424 



THE GEOLOGIST. 



caused such an acciinmlation of -^ater in the southern hemisphere ; while, on 

 the other hand, we find in the northern hemisphere a considerahly smaller 

 amount of water, but a greater excess of land. If we divide the land and 

 water on our earth into one thousand parts, we shall find that there are but 

 two hundred and seventy-five parts land, and seven hundred and twenty-five 

 parts water. In the southern hemisphere opposed to the perihelion, we find 

 sixty-five parts of land out of two hundred and seventy-five, while there are 

 four hundred and thnty-five of water out of the seven hundred and twenty-five 

 parts ; on the other hand, in the northern hemisphere, opposed to the aphelion, 

 there are two hundred and ten parts out of the two hundred and seventy-five 

 parts of land, and but two hundi'ed and ninety parts out of seven hundred and 

 twenty-five of water. Can such remarkable facts and such a great disparity be 

 accounted for in any other way than as stated in our theory ? 



"As abeady stated, and being demonstrably proved, that the perihelion 

 moves round the ecliptic in twenty thousand nine hundred and eighty-four 

 years, we wilL, for example, divide this circle into four quarters of ninety 

 degrees, each of five thousand two hundred and forty-six years ; and also state 

 the change and amount in degrees of declination through which the periheHon 

 will pass, both north and south, for it is at these four points of decUnatiou 

 (that is, the two extreme and the two middle points of declination) that certain 

 dynamical effects are produced, which vdll most sensibly strike the reader. 



"At present, in the year 1830, the longitude of the perihelion is about one 

 hundred degrees, one minute, five seconds, or in about ten degrees, one 

 minute, five seconds of Capricorn ; if from this year we fall back some thou- 

 sand years, say, from ten degrees, one minute, five seconds of Capricorn, to the 

 first degree of Cancer, a period of eleven thousand and seventy-seven years, 

 and take our starting point when the perihelion point had its place in the first 

 degree of Cancer, in extreme north declination, we may conclude that the low 

 lands in the northern hemisphere would be overwhelmed by the ocean, as is the 

 case with, the low lands in the southern hemisphere at the present day. It 

 follows, therefore, that (relatively to the year 1830) it is now eleven thousand 

 and seventy-seven years ago since the northern hemisphere was last submerged, 

 or nine thousand two hundred and forty-seven years before Christ. 



" The perihelion would then pass through Cancer, descend through Leo to 

 the first degree of Virgo, where it would be at a middle declination of eleven 

 degrees forty-five minutes north, when the ocean would commence descending 

 either rapidly or gradually southward, and overwhelm the lands of the southern 

 tropics, while the northern hemisphere would be becoming gradually dry, at 

 the time of the perihelion passing through the sign of Tirgo, and crossing tlie 

 equator : this would occur five thousand eight hundred and thirty years ago, 

 or about four thousand years before Chi'ist. 



" We may here remark the close agreement of our physical theory at this 

 period with many Oriental traditions, and the records of the Je-^ish writers, 

 and also with the description in the first chapters of the Mosaic account. 



" This completes the first quarter of ninety degrees of the ecliptic, in five 

 thousand two hundi-ed and forty-six years of motion through the same circle. 



" In commencing our second quarter, we find the perihelion crossing the 

 equator to the first degree of Libra, the ocean descending and overwhelming 

 the southern tropics, where the lands would be exposed to the force of turbu- 

 lent fioods ; this commotion would continue while the perihelion was descend- 

 ing through Libra to the first degree of Scorpio, at eleven degrees forty-five 

 minutes of south dechnation, and while passing through Scorpio, the rapid 

 descent of the ocean southwards would then gradually sulDside, having con- 

 tinued three thousand four hundred and ninety-eight years, while the perihelion 

 had been descending from the first degree of Virgo, in north declination, to 



