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world as well as in the moral, we may have our long periods of fabulous history. But these things belong not to inductive geology; and all I now contend for is, that in the well-established facts brought to light by our investigations, there is no such thing as an indefinite succession of phenomena*."

When the Copernican system of astronomy was established, and the earth, no longer regarded as the centre of the universe, was proved to be one of a system of bodies revolving round the sun, the question naturally arose were the other bodies of that system habitable and inhabited; and, reasoning from analogy, astronomers were disposed to answer the question in the affirmative. It was true, that as regards the distribution of light and heat, and the intensity of gravitation, a very different state of things must prevail in most of those planets from what obtains on the earth; but seeing that every part of this earth was crowded with sentient beings, possessing an organization so adapted to the conditions of existence assigned them, as to render that existence a state of enjoyment, it appeared highly improbable that all the variety here displayed should be limited to one planet, and that all the others should be mere blanks, made only to be gazed at by us, and destitute of beings suited to their respective states. And when the modern researches of astronomy extended to the fixed stars, showed them to be suns, like that which forms the centre of our system, and when it was found that they were arranged in groups circling round each other, the argument from analogy was carried further, and the probability was inferred of each of these suns being attended by its system of planets, with their satellites, the whole teeming with life under a countless variety of forms, and under a countless variety of conditions. Geology comes in aid of these conjectures, by showing that this our planet has existed under a different distribution, of land and sea, of heat, and perhaps of light, from that which it at present enjoys; and that, under these different circumstances, it was not a mere blank, but was as much crowded as now with living beings adapted to the then state of things. A contemplation of the variety of organization manifested in the world around us, cannot fail to excite our wonder; but if we extend our researches to the remains entombed in the earth's crust, our wonder will be increased at the increased variety we shall find; and we shall be convinced that the existing system of nature is but a part of what has been, and that the whole visible creation, past and present, may be but an atom compared with the invisible.

If we apply ourselves to the task of classifying organized bodies now existing, arranging them in groups as they differ from or resemble each other in their structure, we find that those forms of each group which are most dissimilar, are connected by a series of gradations, separated from each other by the most minute distinctions, and that the groups, whether we regard the larger or the subordinate divisions, are again connected by forms possessing some of the characteristics of two groups. There are, however, cases in which the transitions are more abrupt; and when these cases occur we frequently recover, among the extinct forms of an ancient state of nature, those connecting links which are wanting

* Anniversary Address—Proceedings of Geological Society, p. 305.

in the existing creation. As instances, we may mention the ichthyosauri, before alluded to, as combining some of the characters of a lizard with those of a fish, and occupying among saurians the place of the whale and seal among mammalia; and pterodactyles which bore the same analogy to lizards, that the bat now bears to mammalia. The pachydermatous* order of mammalia, as existing at present, consists of but few genera,— the elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, horse, hog, and tapir, genera possessing but slight resemblance to each other, and singularly poor in species. The tertiary strata of the Paris basin abounds, however, in remains of extinct animals of this order, supplying gradations between some of the above genera, and connecting this order with others. There are, in particular, above forty fossil species of one division of it which contains only four living species. Similar instances might be adduced from other divisions of the animal kingdom; and others are afforded by a comparison of fossil and recent vegetation.

Thus existing and extinct organic bodies can scarcely be said to belong to different systems, but must be considered as composing one great chain of being, formed on one general plan, agreeing, for the most part, in important points of structure, and differing only in minutiae of detail. And if, on examining the organization of beings whose functions we understand, we discover a mechanism like the work of our own hands, but far surpassing in beauty, and excellence, and complexity any workmanship of man: and if in this we see proofs of contrivance, of structure designed for an end, and that end accomplished, we not only discover among fossil organic bodies new and unexpected instances of this, but we have proofs that the same contriving Intelligence has been exerted at the remotest period to which we can trace back the history of the globe, ages, we know not how long, before the existence of the human race.

We find, moreover, that with every change in the state of the earth there has been a corresponding change of organized bodies, and thus we have proofs, not only of an Intelligence adapting mechanism to an end, but that the same contriving Intelligence has been manifested at successive periods adjusting the mechanism to the altered conditions under which it was to exist. With what reverential ideas ought these views to impress us respecting that Being to whom all things owe their existence, eternal in duration, absolute in power, perfect in wisdom, in goodness infinite; and how can we refrain from exclaiming in the language of Holy Writ, "O Lord, how manifold are thy works, in wisdom hast thou made them all: they shall perish but Thou shalt endure; yea, all of them shall wax old as doth a garment, and as a vesture shalt Thou change them, and they shall be changed, but Thou art the same and thy years have no end.”

We have now pointed out some of the leading facts which geology presents to us, and some of the lofty speculations to which they lead, and we have compared them with those of astronomy. Before we proceed to the details of the science, we shall offer a few observations on the advantages attending the study, and we shall endeavour to remove those scruples which cause many well-meaning persons to view it with an unfavourable eye, as opposed to facts recorded in the Sacred Writings.

*Thick-skinned.

14

THE SALT MOUNTAINS OF ISCHIL.

My object in turning out from the direct road to Salzburg, was to visit the Gmunden Lake and the salt mountains of Ischil, which I was told I should find on its southern shore. The road, after leaving Lambach, led by the Traun river, by which the lake discharges itself into the Danube, and down which the salt is conveyed in large flat-bottomed boats. It is an extremely turbulent and rapid stream, and at one spot, where is a high picturesque fall, a wood-shot has been constructed, down which the boats glide with frightful rapidity. At the head of the lake is the village of Gmunden, where is a depôt for salt, and a large manufactory of casks, both belonging to the government. I found here two German students, also pedestrians, with whom I kept company on to Salzburg. We hired a boat to convey us to the other end of the lake. It was rowed by two: men and a girl, there being scarcely any kind of manual labour from which the females of the lower class in Germany are exempted. The lake is romantically situated, having on the eastern side a range of mountains rising boldly from the water, and on the other a champaign country highly cultivated, and sprinkled with herrschaufts* and farmhouses. Among the former was the Traun Stein, which rises abruptly from the lake about two miles from its outlet. It was a bright morning; every object looked cheerful, and my companions when out on the lake commenced a song about freiheit and vaterland, to an air that I had often heard among the Germans of my own father-land Pennsylvania. Suddenly the boat stopped, and the father of the crew, rising up, sprinkled us with water, and with the usual ceremony of baptism gave us each the name of one of the surrounding mountains.

We landed at Ebens-see, a small village at the southern end of the lake, and in reply to our inquiries, they informed us that the salt was manufactured at this place, but that the salt-mines were several miles in the interior. I had supposed that the salt was dug in a solid state from the mountain, and was therefore surprised when they took us to a large building, in which was a sheet-iron pan about sixty feet in diameter and two in depth, with a brisk fire kept up beneath. Water was flowing into it from two huge cocks, and workmen were employed shoveling salt out from the bottom on to a draining-board, from which it was afterwards removed to small cone-shaped vessels, with holes at the bottom for further draining. In these it was suffered to remain until it became solid, when it was turned out, and the moist end of the cone being cut off, it was ready for transportation. Each lump contained about thirtythree pounds.

From Ebens-see we followed the windings of a deep valley for nine miles, when we arrived at Ischil, a pretty little village, frequented by valetudinarians for the benefit of its salt-baths. These are in a new and very handsome edifice, with a Grecian colonnade in front, and an inscription, In sale et sole omnia existunt. The salt mountains are about three miles to the southward of Ischil. They form part of a high and broken range extending eastward and westward, and in the exterior are not to be

*The residences of the titled proprietors.

distinguished from other parts of the range, the vegetation on every part being equally luxuriant. About half way to the summit, we arrived at the residence of the superintendent, and having here obtained permission to enter the mines, were conducted to a house a few hundred yards below, and provided with suitable dresses. Here is one of the entrances, of which there are twelve in all: they informed us that salt is found in any part of the mountain where they take the trouble of digging for it. Our course after entering was along a narrow horizontal gallery, openings occurring at intervals, along which we heard the dashing of water: at our feet were also wooden pipes for water, with branches running off into the various lateral galleries. Having proceeded a quarter of a mile, we came to a halt just where some bare logs rose in a slanting direction, from a cavity whose depth we could not ascertain. A guide straddled this log, and directing me to do the same, and hold on by him, he raised his feet, and away we went, sliding, or rather darting down on the smooth log, and, excepting the glimmering light from our lantern, enveloped in total darkness. The guide kept himself upright, and holding fast to him, I presently found myself deposited in safety on a heap of soft earth, and turned to enjoy the equal astonishment and fright of my companions.

We were now at the bottom of a chamber of irregular shape, but averaging about one hundred and fifty feet in diameter, and from four to ten feet in height; the ceiling in some parts being supported by blocks of sulphate of lime, piled up in the form of rude columns. The gangue of the salt, if the word may be used, is composed chiefly of a clayey earth, mixed up with irregular blocks of sulphate of lime: the salt is mingled with these, usually in strata of from six inches to two feet in thickness, forming, however, every variety, shape and direction. It was generally of a reddish colour, and though mixed with impurities, very strong. The strata were very distinct on the ceiling of the chamber, which looked not unlike marbled paper, the salt itself presenting a great variety of colours, and its gangue scarcely a smaller number. The surface of the salt presented to us was rough and honey-combed.

We now for the first time learnt the mining-process, which certainly is very simple, and sufficiently economical. In the first place, a small chamber is formed by the pick-axe and shovel, and arrangements having been made by means of pipes for conducting water to and from it, the outlet is stopped up, and the chamber is filled with fresh water, of which the mountain-streams furnish them with abundance. In a few weeks the water in the chamber is saturated with salt; it is then let out, and conducted by aqueducts to Ebens-see, a distance of twelve miles, where, as I have already described, the water is evaporated artificially, and the salt is shipped for the store-house at Gmunden. When the chamber has become sufficiently dry, the workmen descend into it, clear it from the stones and dirt which have been loosened by the water and fallen from the ceiling, and the chamber is then ready for another flooding. The large chamber we were in, as the guides informed us, requires one month for the process of filling, fifteen days more for completing the saturation: it holds eighty thousand German Emers, is filled four times a year, and has been in use thirty years: one hundred lbs. of water

furnish twenty-six and three-fourths lbs of salt. There are thirty-four chambers in all, in which two hundred men are employed, working night and day, six hours at a time. They work four days in a week, and get forty-eight cents per week. When the chambers are approaching so as to threaten a breach from one into the other, the further encroachment of the water in that direction is prevented by a compound formed by the clay and pulverized rock, which is beaten against the wall so as to form an effectual barrier. At intervals, in the descent of the mountain, are three reservoirs, into which the water is successively discharged, I believe for the purpose of breaking the violence of the descent.

There is a chain of six or seven very beautiful lakes in this neighbourhood, two of which we visited after leaving Ischil, and on the 29th August stopped for a short rest at Salzburg. Our consul at Vienna had described in glowing terms the beautiful scenery at Berchtsgaden, a short day's journey to the south of Salzburg, and as it had also a salt-mountain, I determined to pay it a visit. There are also salt-mines at Hallein, south from Salzburg, which I did not examine, but which I was informed are worked, and are about as productive as those of Ischil.

Berchtsgaden is now comprehended in the kingdom of Bavaria. The royal family were there on a visit at this time: they had just beer inspecting the mines, and I found many parts of the interior ornamented in a fanciful manner; the richest crystals of the salt and gypsum having been collected and disposed so as to form grottoes, devices, &c.: some of the former were large and perfectly transparent, but a deep red or brown is the prevailing colour. This mine appeared to me to be richer than that of Ischil. In some parts the salt forms regular solid strata, several feet in thickness, and so free from foreign matter as to be fit for use without any purifying process. In these places it is mined by the aid of gunpowder, and the guides, after placing us in secure places, allowed us to witness two or three explosions. Generally, however, the mine differs very little from that of Ischil. We entered by a horizontal gallery, a quarter of a mile in length, and then came to branching galleries, along which pipes were conducted for filling the chambers with water, or emptying them. One hundred and ninety men are employed, and the yearly product, I was told, is eight thousand one hundred and thirtyfour tons.

[From SILLIMAN'S Journal.]

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