392 On the Mosaic account of the Creation. 



place either in the nature of the species, or in the climates of 

 the earth. But no such revolution is shewn in the Mosaical 

 record, or can accord with its recital, therefore other revolu- 

 tions in one or other of these must be assumed to supply the 

 chasm in the Mosaical record. Thus it reasons in perversion 

 of all logic, and in exclusion of the true explication of the 

 phenomenon."* 



Thus mistaking the period assigned by the Mosaic record 

 to the first great revolution or change which our earth 

 undoubtedly has experienced in temperature, and twisting 

 the operations and events of the third creative day, previous 

 to the existence of the animal and vegetable classes into a 

 revolution; Penn is of necessity obliged to refer the whole 

 of the fossil exuviae, both of the secondary and tertiary beds, 

 to the period of the deluge, and thus we fathom his great 

 anxiety to make the land and sea change places. 



The strictest and most literal reading of the Mosaic narra- 

 tive by no means warrants this conclusion, but on the contra- 

 ry, points out distinctly two periods of destruction subsequent 

 to the creation of organic v beings, which periods too are 

 widely separated. The first of these was produced by a great 

 and decided change in the temperature of the then existing 

 countries, by which many species were destroyed both of 

 plants and animals, and therefore, in spite of his unguarded 

 assertion, that tropical species did not live and die in the 

 countries where their exuviae are now found, and that u no 

 such revolution is shewn in the Mosaical record," I shall 

 endeavour presently to prove, both that those animals did 

 formerly inhabit " our northern latitudes," and that the his- 

 torian has recorded the period of their loss. 



But first let us follow the Mosaic geologist through his 

 argument of the total destruction of the earth. 



" Such," he continues, " being the consentient understand- 

 ing of all the principal Hebrew authorities, it establishes the 



* Comp. Est. p. 307, et seq. 



