100 
J. E. Lee — Saliern and Büdesheim Fossils. 
Admitting, in agreement with Mr. Croll, the existence of a 
Southern ice-cap on the earth at the present day, which he ascribes 
to geographical causes, wliile Mr. Croll ascribes it to astronomical, 
he still seems to concur with Mr. Croll in ascribing the great extent 
of the Southern oceans to the action of this ice-cap. For he says : 
“ The ice-cap, as Mr. Croll has elaborately shown, will, by displacing 
the earth’s centre of gravity, draw a greater share of ocean water to 
the glaciated hemisphere.” Now it is obviously impossible to ascribe 
the oceanic character of our Southern hemisphere to the ice-cap, if 
the ice-cap is itself due to the ocean climate ; so obviously indeed 
that it is impossible to believe Mr. Murphy intended to do so : yet it 
is difficult to read his words otherwise. 
But there are diflSculties every way. For if our Southern oceans 
are not mainly due to the ice-cap, it has to be considered that they 
inay be due to a permanent internal displacement of the centre 
of gravity from the centre of figure of the earth — especially if Sir 
William Thomson is correct in supposing the interior of the earth to 
be solid. And if this is t^e case, then the tendency of water to 
collect in the Southern hemisphere will be a permanent one, and 
will always militate a good deal against the glaciation of the 
Northern hemisphere. 
Certainly if the clioice lay between supposing the great abundance 
of water in the Southern hemisphere to be due to a displacement of 
the earth’s centre of gravity by a polar ice-cap, and supposing it due 
to a permanent internal displacement, I should prefer the latter 
supposition. And for this reason. The probability seems immensely 
strong that, in the process of formation of a body like the earth 
(whatever that process might be), the centre of gravity would not 
take the exact position of the centre of figure — immensely stronger 
than that it would. If the centre of gravity, however, were not in 
the centre of figure, it would necessarily lie in the axis of rotation : 
in fact, the axis of rotation would not be permanent unless it passed 
through the centre of gravity. Tlius the centre of gravity would 
necessarily come to lie towards one or other of the poles ; and thus 
would result a necessary, though indirect, connexion between the 
pole and the preponderance of water in its neighbourhood. 1 
II. — Notice of the DrscovERT of Upper Devonian Fossils in 
TUE SuALES OF TORBAY . 2 
By John Edward Lee, F.G.S., etc. 
(PLATE V.) 
I N the present state of our knowledge of the Devonian formation, 
it seems liighly desirable, if possible, to correlate any of the 
beds in Devonshire with those of this wide-spread formation on 
the Continent. 
1 An excellent article on the planet Mars appeared in the Quarterly Journal of 
Science, vol. ii. for 1865, p. 369, from the pen of the late Prof. John Phillips, M.A., 
E.R.S., whose name is still dear to many of our geological readers. — Edit. Geol. Mao. 
2 The Editor expresses his regret that he has unwillingly detained this Notice 
without publication for several months, the plate not having been executed. — Ed, 
Geol. Mag. 
