CARBON DIOXIDE OF THE OCEAN 617 
the elevated land being accompanied by rapid disintegration 
and erosion. The increasing cold only slightly affects this 
process (a’) by the decrease in vegetation; (b’) by the slight 
decrease in chemical activity of the CO,; (c’) by the freezing 
of the ground, preventing free percolation of the underground 
water, etc. But it aids disintegration by frost action, etc. (c) 
The polar seas constantly absorb CO, from the atmosphere. 
The increasing cold, with the increasing volume of cold waters, 
therefore adivectly robs the atmosphere of the CO,. This process 
is not so marked in the warmer waters, because of the counter- 
acting effect of the postulated diminishing partial pressure of 
CO... 
2. The supply of CO,, outside of that of plutonic and extra- 
terrestrial origin comes (a) from the dissociation of bicarbonates 
in equatorial waters. The decreasing partial pressure aids this 
and the restricted area of warm water counteracts it. (b) The 
second equivalent of bicarbonate freed by lime-producing ani- 
mals. The fall of temperature directly affects this most impor- 
tant source of supply, as it is well known that a fall of a few 
degrees in the ocean water would wipe out whole genera of test- 
producing animals. 
To sum up, then: Accepting Dr. Chamberlin’s proposition 
that the advance of a cold period is primarily dependent upon 
the altitude of land and water, the effect of the ocean is both to 
remove the atmospheric carbonic acid gas by the southern and 
upward invasion of the cold waters, and to decrease the supply 
of CO, to the atmosphere by the destruction of the lime-secret- 
ing animals. Therefore we conclude that the ocean very greatly 
entensifies the secular variation of the earth's temperature, although 
acting as a moderating agent in the minor cycles. 
It is interesting to note what a different state of affairs we 
would have if the CO, in the ocean were simply dissolved as a 
gas from the atmosphere according to the laws of gas absorp- 
tion. A diminution of the partial pressure of the CO, in the 
atmosphere, as postulated, would bring out of the ocean 38 to 
45 per cent. of its great store of CO,. A lowering of 5° in 
