1877.] The Age of this Earth. 291 
cannot agree with the author of the article in the Quarterly, or 
allow that this Glacial theory in any way interferes with geolog- 
ical time as laid down by the late Sir Charles Lyell. Having 
thus disposed of certain details as to the age of this earth, we 
must now briefly consider the position of our geological science 
on this point. 
Properly speaking, geology is a discourse of things on or in 
the earth, of things tangible and visible. Geologists in accept- 
ing the theory of Laplace, make the foundation of their science 
neither tangible nor visible. It suited geology to adopt it be- 
cause, in the prevailing ignorance of natural laws, it seemed to 
explain the causes of certain phenomena. Now that a more ac- 
curate knowledge of cosmical law is creeping up, there is no ex- 
cuse for adhering longer to a theory which is incapable of explain- 
ing the cause of igneous phenomena on or in the earth, while it 
is made ridiculous by the little figures of the mathematicians. 
We cannot meet the dogmas of science on this subject because 
we think with a finite mind on an infinite beginning ; but we ask 
geologists and mathematicians to follow us through a brief trac- 
ing of the cosmical laws and their actions from that beginning, 
as far as that has been revealed to us till now. 
There was a void chaos of waters without form, and dark ; how 
long this earth remained in this condition we do not know. A 
water-bed was formed, light was given, motion, day and night 
ensued, revolution of the earth on its axis had commenced and 
continued to this sphere its hours of labor and of rest. Another 
result followed the presence of light: water was attracted by it, 
as it is to-day ; the water clouds were collected in the firmament, 
and were divided from the waters under the firmament ; all this 
law is in force now, but no one can say how long a time elapsed 
before the action became perfect and complete. 
As the light caused a movement in the waters, so the waters 
acted on their bed. No one can say where the general level of 
that early bed was. But as it deepened from the ever-acting 
erosion of the waters, they were of necessity gathered unto one 
place, and the bed which they had rested on became dry land. 
No science can tell when this happened; we do not know 
where the first water-level was, the level of the dry land or its 
lity; no one knows when light first shone upon earth, or 
When it first divided the waters; we cannot say how long the 
atmosphere and the water were occupied in forming the silicious 
nucleus of our earth, but we know that it gives silicious matter 
