322 Reviews — Efiitton's Theory of the Earth. 



he admittedly stood among those of the speculative writers of 

 his time." 



We may quote a few passages in reference to the visit to Arran 

 which was made in 1786 : — 



"In setting out upon that expedition, I had but one object in 

 view ; this was the nature of the granite, and the connection of it 

 with the contiguous strata. . . . Our head-quarters were at 

 Brodowick [Brodick], and our first object was to examine around 

 the mountain of Goatfield for the connection of the granite with the 

 strata or surrounding bodies. This, however, cost us a great deal of 

 trouble to accomplish. . . . After making some other fruitless 

 attempts, I set out on horseback for Loch Ranza ; with a view to 

 investigate the same object by the way, as well as to examine the 

 north end of the island, where I knew the coal and slate were 

 worked near the shore. Upon this road I observed that the North 

 Sanox river, which I had crossed in entering the schistus district to 

 the north, runs nearly in the junction of the schistus and the granite 

 mountains, the characters of which are very distinguishable to the 

 view. I then went forward, but in returning I quitted my horse, 

 and went over the mosses and muir towards the heads of that North 

 Sanox river which there divides into two streams. Here I had the 

 satisfaction to find the immediate junction of the schistus with the 

 granite, in the solid rock, exposed perfectly to view, and that in 

 both of these rivulets, a little way above their junction. Nothing 

 can be more evident than that here the schistus had been broken and 

 invaded by the granite ; as in this place the regular stratification of 

 the vertical schistus is broken obliquely by the other rock, and 

 parts of the schistus involved or almost insulated in the mass of 

 granite, which from this junction enters and traverses the body 

 of the schistus in little veins terminating in capillaries." 



This and many other passages show the care and discrimination 

 with which Hutton pursued his observations, and the remarkable 

 insight he showed in determining the geological structure. In his 

 visit to Arran, as in his "Journey to the North Alpine part of 

 Scotland," in 1785, the question before him was how far the granite 

 " is to be considered as a primary mass in relation to the alpine 

 schistus ; in that case, fragments of the granite might be found 

 included in the schistus, but none of the schistus in the granite." 



In elucidation of the text the Editor has inserted numerous 

 explanatory notes, which are full of interest in themselves, and will 

 greatly aid the reader. Moreover, he has most effectively supplied 

 the place of the missing drawings by original pictorial views and 

 drawings taken by himself in Arran while specially following 

 Hutton's route with his description in hand. Other illustrations 

 borrowed from publications by Macculloch and the Geological Survey 

 are introduced to make clear particular features described in the 

 work. The Editor has furnished an index to the volume, and also 

 a sepai'ate index to vols, i and ii — a contribution which will be 

 much appreciated by the happy possessors of those volumes. 



We may heartily congratulate Sir Archibald Geikie and the 



