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South America are of Pprphipy, 
those of Central Asia still higher 
are of stratified primitive rocks 
jumbled like marble paper. 
The great geological question 
of the igneous or aqueous origine 
of the globe and the primitive 
formations is now pretty much at 
rest. It is become more impor- 
tant to ascertain the origine of 
the secondary formations, with 
their immense stores of life and 
organic remains, therein entomb- 
ed. 
The theorists once sustained 
that all the limestone had been 
made up of shells by compression 
although we have primitive and 
volcanic limestone without shells. 
Now they maintain that ail the 
coal formations are made up of 
wood by compression, because the 
lignite is thus formed, but the pri- 
mitive and volcanic anthracite 
and bitumite without any trace 
of wood upsets this theory also. 
No one can be a good geologist 
without having seen volcanoes, 
or at least without having studied 
well their actual operations 
throughout the globe. After see- 
ing the huge volcanoes of South 
America throwing yet streams of 
water, mud, clay, sand, marl, bi- 
tumite, pichstone, &c. instead of 
melted stones, while the-.. same > 
happens also in Java, Spain, Si- 
cily, Russia.... Humboldt could 
well account for many ancient ge- 
ological phenomena, and he was 
even led to surmise that the great 
Asiatic flood was caused by a vol- 
canic eruption of waters from the 
Caspian Sea- If this should be 
confirmed by inspections, we may 
well surmise that our great flood 
of North America, traced by our 
diluvial formations, was also cau- 
sed by eruptions from our great 
Northern Lakes. 
Yolney was the first to call Lake 
Ontario a volcanoe! and to notice 
our ancient mountain lakes now 
dried up, by eruptions or convul- 
sions, each having a breach or 
water gap. I am induced to am- 
plify his views by deeming near- 
ly all our lakes, as many volcanic 
outlets, which have not merely 
thrown waters in later periods 
but in more ancient periods have 
formed nearly all our secondary 
strata by eruptions of muddy wa- 
ter, mud, clay, liquid coal, basalts 
trap. This was when the ocean 
covered yet the land. 
Submarine or oceanic volcanoes 
exist as yet every where in the 
ocean, Sc their effects are known. 
They must of course be hollow 
outlets under water, that would 
become lakes if the ocean was 
dried up. We can form an idea 
of their large number and extent 
by the late but natural discovery, 
that all the Lagoon ids, and cir- 
cular clusters of Islands in the 
Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian 
oceans are volcanic craters ! This 
is now admitted even in England, 
and the coral reef often crowning 
those clusters are later superin- 
cumbent formations by animals. 
The Bahama Ids in the Atlantic, 
the Maldives near India, and 
the Coral Ids. all over the Pacific 
are the most striking of these 
singular volcanic clusters, near- 
ly at a level with the ocean. Some 
of them are of immense extent 
from 60 to 150 miles in circuit, 
or even more. 
Some circular bays and gulfs 
of the sea appear to be similar, 
differing by having only one 
breach. The bay of Naples is 
one also, an ancient crater, with 
islands in front. 
The analogy between lakes and 
volcanic craters is obvious. Al- 
