Prof. Cotia’s Eulogy on Von Buch. 5 
pressed upward from below in a molten condition like lava; and 
that by these same reactions of the earth’s interior, the elevation 
of mountain chains, and of whole districts of country have been 
brought about. 
He first directed attention to the determinate, and often recipro- 
cally parallel, direction of lineal mountain chains, or extensive dis- 
locations of strata. He distinguished four principal lines of eleva- 
tion in Germany, upon which generalization Elie de Beanmont 
afterwards building, founded his artificial system of mountain 
lines, which, however, in its last form was not admitted even by 
L. v. Buch himself. He was the first of all to show that the 
large volcanoes had had their origin not alone from the simple 
heaping upon one another of lava streams and loose ejected 
masses, bnt that they had been elevated to a higher altitnde 
together with the consolidated masses before present. In this 
manner he distinguished craters of elevation, and craters of erup- 
tion; and if in this last division he may in isolated cases have 
gone too far, still the most essential part of his doctrine will 
always remain of the highest importance. 
Having once had his attention directed to the effects of volca- 
nic activity, he investigated the mode of distribution of volcanoes 
upon the earth, registered upon charts all known ones, and show- 
ed that they were distributed partially in groups and partially in 
linesof which the last mentioned evidently were arranged upon 
long extended lineal cracks in the earth’s crust. These investi- 
gations were first communicated in his splendid work on the Ca- 
nary Islands. 
Besides the local effects of the present voleanic activity as it is 
there developed where active volcanoes exist on the earth’s sur- 
ace, he early recognized also the effects of this same force in its 
more universal and less distinctly remarked phases. e it was 
Who first of all in Germany proved that the continuons remarka- 
ble changes of level on many of the Baltic coasts cannot have 
their origin, as was generally believed to be the case, in the siuk- 
ing of the sea, but that they are to be explained only by a grad- 
ual secular elevation of a great partof Sweden. And this view 
as since then been established beyond a doubt by an earlier op- 
poser of it, Sir Charles Lyeil. 
Twill not linger long over his‘theory on the part which the 
Melaphyre has played, and its influence on the formation of Do- 
lomite, becanse this of all of his new views is perhaps most sub- 
Jected to doubt. But even if this whole hypothesis should fall 
to the gronnd, still it was at any rate put forth with so much 
Spirit and ingenuity, that it earned and obtained at the time, the 
highest attention, aud in the most lively manner drew the atten- 
tion of others to new investigations. In general the beautiful, 
‘vely and convincing mauner of representation in all + Be 
i 
ey 
