Distribution of Land and Water. $27 
southern latitudes, equivalent to those of the temperate regions 
of western Europe, suggests the possibility, that by an inversion 
of the operating causes, the southern hemisphere might have en- 
joyed a milder climate at the same geological period when gla- 
cial phenomena were most completely developed north of the 
8. The results of our inquiry may be thus recapitulated :— 
(1) The physical properties of water appear upon the whole 
more favorable than those of the land, to the accumulation, re- 
tention, and distribution of solar heat throughout the matter 
composing the external coating of the earth. 
(2.) Phenomena presented by intertropical seas at the present 
day, confirm and illustrate this conclusion. 
3.) The distribution of land and water most favorable toa 
neral increase of terrestrial mean temperature, should, there- 
ore, be such as would imply the existence of great intertropical 
seas and of groups of islands evenly distributed both within the 
topics and in extratropical regions. 
on Such a distribution of land and water at former geological 
hs, seems to be indicated by the results of observation. 
tion of 
— in their favor may render advisable. If, from the re- 
duced to believe that the earth has been for ages slowly cooling 
ler 4 state of former incandescence, its climate during the ear- 
infin eee’ Of its physical history must have been more or less 
very high temperature which must have iled duri 
prevailed durin 
on wages of the earth’s history. If we reject the evideuas 
“ - has been concluded that the earth has slowly cooled 
admit that 5. candieocent state into its observed condition, and 
ae ale € earth’s spheroidal shape was due to gradual and 
eg ng causes, and not to the mechanical consequences of - 
ve and universal fluidity, we shall arrive at a conclu- 
