198 



THE GEOLOGIST. 



this district, Mr. Sainter has sent us various other fossils he has collected 

 there. Amongst them is a small part of a Fulgurite " found in the drift 

 on the west side of the town, last December." " It was traced," Mr. Smith 

 says, "thirty feet below the surface, and terminated in a layer or bed of 

 soft marl. It passed through a bed of fine sand, almost perpendicularly. 

 The diameter of the tube near the surface was nearly three-quarters of an 

 inch. It gradually diminished in width in its descent, and towards its ter- 

 mination split into a number of finer tubes ending in points. Some parts of 

 the tube possessed bead-like vitrifications on the inner surface, and it was 

 contorted." Those who have read Dr. Gribb's interesting summary of this 

 subject in Vol. II. p. 195, will be pleased to see recorded this additional 

 example. — Ed. Geol. 



Pilot Knob, in Missouri, is a conical mound of a sugar-loaf shape, 

 550 feet in height, and covering 500 acres. According to estimate, it con- 

 tains no less than 220,000,000 tons of iron ore, having 65 per cent, of pure 

 metal in it. 



Native Copper. — A mass nearly pure has recently been discovered in 

 the Mesnard district, Michigan. It is 40 feet in length by 4 broad, and 

 as many high ; its weight is about 50 tons. Another great mass of copper 

 has been met with in the same district, 15 feet 7 inches long, 3 feet 7 inches 

 to 5 feet wide, and 18 inches thick ; giving 87 cubic feet, or a weight of 23 

 tons. A small portion only of the mass, covered by moss and underbush, 

 was above the surface when discovered. On removing the soil, pieces 

 of charcoal, some stone hammers, gave traces of old Indian workings ; 

 the eastern end of the mass showing plainly that a portion had been 

 broken off. 



REVIEWS. 



' The Antiquity of Man : ' an Examination of Sir Charles LyelVs recent 

 Work. By S. R. Pattison, F.G.S. London: Reeve and Co. 



" The moral and spiritual teachings of the Bible would remain untouched, 

 though it were proved that its histories must be restricted to one human 

 period alone amongst several. But the supposition that there have been 

 many such periods is contrary to our first impressions. The burthen of 

 proof lies therefore on those who propose it." Thus opens Mr. Pattison's 

 pamphlet, with a dictum no one would be willing to gainsay. This condi- 

 tion of proving what is contrary to popular, cherished opinion has been 

 accepted by Sir Charles Lyell, who has adapted the evidence of the An- 

 tiquity of Man in his recent work to the support of one school of zoolo- 

 gical theorists rather than to the deliverance to the public of the actual 

 geological evidence as it is, or as it is viewed by at least very eminent sec- 

 tions of geologists and zoologists. To adapt all the evidence that came to 

 his hand to his own purposes, and to the support of his own views, is no 

 more than we should have expected of Sir Charles, who, in all his pub- 

 lished works, has adopted this practice. Nor have we much to say against 

 him on this score. If he belong to a party, — and he is alwa} 7 s a partisan, 

 — there is no objection to his doing all he can to advance their views ; but 

 a partisan draws down on himself a great deal of bitter antagonism. 

 Perhaps Sir Charles has experienced more of this already than he antici- 

 pated. With personalities we have nothing to do in our reviews ; our 

 view goes to the science, not the man. Mr. Pattison objects to the 



