is known upon the whole subject; and that all
geological deductions must be crude, unauthentic,
and conjectural.
It must be candidly admitted that the season
has not yet arrived, when a perfect theory of
the whole earth can be fixedly and finally established,
since we have not yet before us all the
facts on which such a theory may eventually be
founded; but, in the mean while, we have abundant
evidence of numerous and indisputable phenomena,
each establishing important and undeniable
conclusions; and the aggregate of these
conclusions, as they gradually accumulate, will
form the basis of future theories, each more
and more nearly approximating to perfection;
the first, and second, and third story of our
edifice may be soundly and solidly constructed;
although time must still elapse before the
roof and pinnacles of the perfect building can
be completed. Admitting therefore, that we
have yet much to learn, we contend that much
sound knowledge has been already acquired;
and we protest against the rejection of established
parts, because the whole is not yet made
perfect.
It was assuredly prudent, during the infancy
of Geology, in the immature state of those physical
sciences which form its only sure foundation,
not to enter upon any comparison of
the Mosaic account of creation with the structure
of the earth, then almost totally unknown
; the time was not then come when the
knowledge of natural phenomena was sufficiently
advanced to admit of any profitable investigation
of this question; but the discoveries
of the last half century have been so extensive
in this department of natural knowledge, that,
whether we will or not, the subject is now forced
upon our consideration, and can no longer escape
discussion. The truth is, that all observers,
however various may be their speculations, respecting
the secondary causes by which geological
phenomena have been brought about, are
now agreed in admitting the lapse of very long
periods of time to have been an essential condition
to the production of these phenomena.
It may therefore be proper, in this part of our
enquiry, to consider how far the brief account of
creation, contained in the Mosaic narrative, can
be shown to accord with those natural phenomena,
which will come under consideration
in the course of the present essay. Indeed
some examination of this question seems indispensable
at the very threshold of an investigation,
the subject matter of which will be
derived from a series of events, for the most part,
long antecedent to the creation of the human
species. I trust it may be shown, not only that
there is no inconsistency between our interpretation
of the phenomena of nature and of the Mo