278 
THE GEOLOGIST, 
with the necessary data of coming to just conclusions on tliis interesting topic; 
but this, however, would not be sufficient reason for the absence of all dis- 
cussion on tiie point. We have ever accorded to every opinion, whether wc 
agree with it or not, a fair and just notice, but with the pruiciples of the pre- 
sent book no one could for a moment suppose that wc should concur. Written 
with an evident desire to attain logical deductions and conclusions, our task 
in reviewing it becomes consctiueutly the more easy, because given any f)re- 
sumcd fact as a basis, the truth of the conclusion, if really logically brought 
out, depends not upon the logic, but upon the actuality and positivcncss 
of tlie original fact upon which the arguments and deductions are based. 
We do not admit the basis upon which Mr. Davies attempts to argue, 
namely, that fossils grow or are naturally produced in particular knids 
of rocks and soils, according to an original fiat of the Creator, as animals 
and plants are from germs and seeds which are developed under their 
particular and essential conditions. Mr. Davics disputes that fossils arc 
tlie remains of pre-existing vegetables and animals, and he considers them 
to belong to the mineral kmgdom entirely, and to be developed by a peculiar 
condition of crystallization — plasticity, as it used to be called, we suppose 
he means. 
Now such a natural resemblance to organic forms by mere crystallizing forces 
we think few people will be for a moment inclined to seriously consider ; but 
as there may be some to whom the fallacy of this position may not be apparent, 
we would simply remark that fossils exhibit in themselves the true conditions 
of what they really are, namely, the soHd parts of oljjects once under the mys- 
terious influences of vitality, which, after the cessation of the vital forces, have 
been resigned to the action of the crystalUzing, chemical, and other forces of 
the mineral kingdom. Refuting the premises is refuting the principles, and 
consequently the arguments, however skilful they might be, must tliereforc 
necessarily fall ; and as Mr. Davies is thoroughly wrong m his basis, his con- 
clusions must be wrong also. 
The Old Glaciers of Switzerland and North Wales. By A. C. Eamsay, T.RS., 
P.G.S. London : Longman and Co. 1860. 
These pleasant chapters formed part of a volume — "Peaks, Passes, and 
Glaciers" — which we reviewed in our August number of last year, and in which 
we laid special stress on this portion eontriDuted by Professor Ramsay. In their 
present pretty pocket-book form, accompanied by a well-defined map of the 
ancient glacier-regions around the famous Snowdon, they will form an attractive 
companion and a useful guide to the tourist in this district of Wales. 
Por the glacier-scenery of Switzerland we need not utter a word, it has only 
to be seen to be appreciated ; and, as Professor Ramsay tridy observes, m the 
Avritings of De Saussure, Charpentier, Agassiz, and James Porbes the charms 
of style and graphic illustration have invested glacial investigations with an 
interest felt far beyond the circle of scientific readers. 
Although the glaciers of Wales have long since melted away, and only the 
marks of their grinding on the rocks in their slow and ponderous passage and 
the loose debris scattered in the vales and hollows in their dissolution remain 
to prove then- former existence and extent, yet we cannot view such time- 
honoured relics without a solemn feeling of awe, and a wish to dive deeper into 
the only seemingly inscrutable mysteries of the past ; for how much has given 
way to man's persevering intellect, and how much more will hereafter yield, by 
the Divine blessing and consent, to his indomitable energies and intellectual 
