Comparison with 1861 |
|
difficult to avoid believing that they are closely consecutive. But we know, for instance, from Sir R.
Murchison's Murchison's 1859 1860 1861 1866 1872 | Murchisons 1869 |
great work on Russia, what wide gaps there are in that country between the superimposed formations; so it is in North America, and in many other parts of the world. The most skilful geologist, if his attention had been
exclusively confined exclusively confined 1859 1860 1861 | confined exclusively 1866 1869 1872 |
to these large territories, would never have suspected
that that 1859 1860 1861 | that, 1866 1869 1872 |
during the periods which were blank and barren in his own country, great piles of sediment, charged with new and peculiar forms of life, had elsewhere been accumulated. And
if if 1859 1860 1861 | if, 1866 1869 1872 |
in each separate territory, hardly any
idea can be formed of the length of time which has elapsed between the consecutive formations, we may infer that this could nowhere be ascertained. The frequent and great changes in the mineralogical composition of consecutive formations, generally implying great changes in the geography of the surrounding lands, whence the sediment has been
derived, accords
with the belief of vast intervals of time having elapsed between each formation. |
|
But we
can, I think, see why the geological formations of each region are almost invariably intermittent; that is, have not followed each other in close sequence. Scarcely any fact struck me more when examining many hundred miles of the South American coasts, which have been upraised several hundred feet within the recent period, than the absence of any recent deposits sufficiently extensive to last for even a short geological period. Along the whole west coast, which is inhabited by a peculiar marine fauna, tertiary beds are so scantily
developed, that no record of several successive
and peculiar marine faunas will probably be preserved to a distant age. A little reflection will explain
why why 1859 1860 1861 | why, 1866 1869 1872 |
along the rising coast of the western side of South America, no extensive formations with recent or
|
difficult to avoid believing that they are closely consecutive. But we know, for instance, from Sir R.
Murchisons Murchisons 1869 | Murchison's 1859 1860 1861 1866 1872 |
great work on Russia, what wide gaps there are in that country between the superimposed formations; so it is in North America, and in many other parts of the world. The most skilful geologist, if his attention had been
confined exclusively confined exclusively 1866 1869 1872 | exclusively confined 1859 1860 1861 |
to these large territories, would never have suspected
that, that, 1866 1869 1872 | that 1859 1860 1861 |
during the periods which were blank and barren in his own country, great piles of sediment, charged with new and peculiar forms of life, had elsewhere been accumulated. And
if, if, 1866 1869 1872 | if 1859 1860 1861 |
in each separate territory, hardly
any any 1859 1860 1861 1869 1872 | andy 1866 |
idea can be formed of the length of time which has elapsed between the consecutive formations, we may infer that this could nowhere be ascertained. The frequent and great changes in the mineralogical composition of consecutive formations, generally implying great changes in the geography of the surrounding lands, whence the sediment
has been has been 1859 1860 1861 1866 1869 | was 1872 |
derived,
accords accords 1859 1860 1861 1866 1869 | accord 1872 |
with the belief of vast intervals of time having elapsed between each formation. |
|
But we But we 1859 1860 1861 1866 1869 | We 1872 |
can, I think, see why the geological formations of each region are almost invariably intermittent; that is, have not followed each other in close sequence. Scarcely any fact struck me more when examining many hundred miles of the South American coasts, which have been upraised several hundred feet within the recent period, than the absence of any recent deposits sufficiently extensive to last for even a short geological period. Along the whole west coast, which is inhabited by a peculiar marine fauna, tertiary beds are so
poorly poorly 1860 1861 1866 1869 1872 | scantily 1859 |
developed, that no record of several
successive successive 1859 1861 1866 1869 1872 | suc- cessive 1860 |
and peculiar marine faunas will probably be preserved to a distant age. A little reflection will explain
why, why, 1866 1869 1872 | why 1859 1860 1861 |
along the rising coast of the western side of South America, no extensive formations with recent or
|