THE

BRITISH CRITIC

For JULY, 1805.

"Præftaret multo literas nefcire, quam ferum, et convicia. torem fieri, dum fcripta ejufmodi hominum legimus."

CLERICUS.

It would be better to be without literature, than to become violent railers, in imitation of those who use that style of writing.

ART. I. Organic Remains of a former World. An Exami nation of the mineralized Remains of the Vegetables and Animals of the Antediluvian World; generally termed extraneous Foffils. By James Parkinfon, Hoxton. Vol. I. containing the Vegetable Kingdom. 4to. 471 pp. 21. 2s. Robfon, White, &c. 1804.

THE unequivocal remains of animal and vegetable bodies,

fhells, bones, leaves, trunks, kernels, &c. that are frequently, and abundantly, found beneath the furface of the earth, even under very thick ftrata of hard fubftances, imbedded in folid rocks, or on elevated mountains; evidently prove that they must have exifted in a living ftate, previously to the formation of the fuperincumbent and furrounding maffes. But the time in which they lived, the catastrophe which buried them, the time neceffary for the formation of the furrounding minerals, together with the various causes which may have concurred towards the production of all

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BRIT. CRIT. VOL. XXVI. JULY, 1805.

those

those phenomena, are fubjects which remain, and perhaps will long remain, involved in much doubt and uncertainty.

Conjectures, the experience of a few centuries, the evidence of facred and profane hiftory, the arguments naturally fuggefted by chemistry, and the light afforded by other fciences, have all lent their affiftance to the inquirer into the wonders of the mineral kingdom, and of the mineralized remains of animals and vegetables. Various authors have treated occafionally and partially of these organic minerals; various ideas have been entertained concerning them, and several contradictory hypothefes have been advanced; but all those particulars were fcattered in a variety of publications, whofe authors were generally unacquainted with other works on the fame fubject, as well as with the fciences fubfervient to it.

Mr. Parkinson in the prefent volume has collected all thofe ufeful facts, conjectures, hypothefes, &c. at prefent, concerning the vegetable remains only, and has digested the whole into a useful and entertaining order.

In a fhort preface this author mentions his eager and longentertained curiofity for examining the foffil remains of objects, which must have preceded fome great catastrophe of our terraqueous globe. He briefly flates the difficulties which impeded the progrefs of his undertaking, acknowledges his obligations to various fcientific gentlemen for their kind affiftance, and explains the principal reafon which induced him to write the prefent work in the epiftolary form; namely, that by this method he might introduce fuch portions of introductory matter, as might be deemed neceffary for thofe readers who had no previous knowledge of the fubject.

The work confifls of 48 letters; for though the numbers reach to 49, yet a letter, numbered 30, is not to be found, owing evidently to an overfight in the numeration.

The titles of thefe letters are as follows:

Letter 1. Rational application of wealth and leifure-Snakeftones-Fairies changed to fnakes-Fairies nightcaps-Bones of giants-Thunderbolts.

Letter 11. Veftiges of the inhabitants of a former worldLime-ftone and marble-Medals of creation-Pleafures afforded by this fcience-Animals in the former world, different from thofe of the prefent.

Letter 111. Early exiftence of thefe fubftances-Noticed by Xenophanes, Herodotus, Eratofthenes, Strabo, Pliny, Ovid, &c.Sketch of the hiftory of the fcience.

Letter IV. Opinions refpecting the origin of thefe bodiesPlastic power-Tranflation of feminal principles-Growth of

ftones

ftones-Terms-Figured ftones-Diluvian ftones-Foffils, extraneous or adventitious New terms propofed-Secondary foffils, vegetable or animal-Faffilia vulgo dicta-Impreffions-CaftsFigured ftones.

Letter v. Form of the earth's furface-Mountains-StrataWisdom manifefted in their difpofition-Different kinds of earths-Alumine; forming clay, lithomarga, flate, &c.-Silica ; forming rock cryftals, calcedony, flint, &c.-Lime; forming lime-ftone, chalk, tufa, marble, &c.-Magnefia; forming fteatites, afbeftos, ferpentine, &c.-Sulphurets, pyrites, or marcafites.

Letter vi. Pleasures of travelling-Wood-ftone-Inquiries re fpecting vegetable foffils.

Letter VII. Vegetable foffils-Foffil trees-Defcribed by the ancients-By the moderns-Found in almost every part of the world.

Letter v111.

Conftituents of vegetables. Germination Growth of vegetables-Food of vegetables.

Letter 1x. Refolution of vegetables into their firft principlesFirst step in the mineralization of vegetables-Vegetable mouldIgnis fatuus.

Letter x. Peat or turf-Defcription of Various kindsLength of time known-Found in various parts of the world. Letter xi. Bituminous wood-Surturbrand of Iceland-Bovey coal of England.

Letter x11. In anfwer, from Bovey-Prefent ftate of the coal. pit at Bovey-Strata, &c.

Letter x111. Bitumens-Particular kinds defcribed-Known to writers of the highest antiquity-Hiftory of Naphtha, Petroleum, and Asphaltum, from the more ancient naturalifts.

Letter XIV. Account of Bitumens continued, from more modern authors-Ray, Dolomieu, &c.-Tar lake in the island of Trinidad-Petroleum Wells in the Burmha dominions-Ruffia,

&c.

Letter xv. Amber-known to the earlieft writers in natural history-Jet-Succinum nigrum of the ancients-Cannel coalDifference between it and Jet.

Letter XVI. Coal defcribed-Different kinds of coal-Doubtful if known to the Greeks, or early Romans-Brought into common ufe, in this ifland, but in modern times-Found in various parts of the world.

Letter xv11. Particularities obfervable in different coal-pits→→ Cannel coal-Pyrites, &c.

Letter xv111. Bituminous fermentation-Compared with the other fpecies of fermentation-Bitumens, the refult of this procefs-Peat, a vegetable foffil, the firft product of this fermenta. tion.

Letter xix. Foffil trees, imbedded in peat, have undergone the bituminous fermentation-The changes which mow-burnt hay

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hay undergoes, fomewhat fimilar to that produced by the bituminous fermentation.

- Letter xx. Examination of opinions refpecting the origin of peat-Aboriginal formation-A marine depofit-Mineral origin -Floating islands-A recent vegetable fubftance.

Letter xxI. The purer bitumens, the refult of the fame fermentation by which peat has been formed-Bituminous fermenta. tion imitates, in its refult, the operation of fecretion-Mineral tallow, perhaps of animal origin-Other arguments in favour of bituminous fermentation.

Letter xx11. Of the origin of the purer bitumens-Naphtha→→→ Petroleum-Mineral tar-Mineral pitch-Afphaltum-AmberMellite-Jet and Cannel coal.

Letter XXI. Opinions refpecting the formation of coalEarth impregnated with petroleum, the opinion of Buffon and Genfanne Opinion of Sign. Arduino-Of Dr. Hutton and Profeffor Playfair-Of Mr. Williams-Of Monf. Tingry-Of Dr. Darwin-Of Mr. Kirwan-Of Mr. Hatchett-Of Monf. Patrin -Of Monf. Fourcroy.

Letter XXIV. Inquiry refpecting the origin of coal continued -Hypothefis propofed-Mofaic account of the Deluge-Objections against-Univerfality of the Deluge-Changes thus effected-Vegetable matter difpofed in fituations in which coal now

exists.

Letter xxv. Inquiry whether the vegetable matter was de pofited at the Deluge under circumstances favourable to its converfion into coal-Bitumen alone not fitted for fuel-Other matters neceffary to be added-Peculiar arrangement of the particles. Letter xxvI. Recapitulation-Apparent agreement of the hypothefis with the economy of nature.

Letter XXVII. Mineral charcoal-Opinions refpecting-Subterranean combuftion of pit-coal-Combustion of pyrites-Mineral charcoal.

Letter XXVIII. Pyritous woods--Opinions of Dr. Hutton and Mr. Playfair-Igneous origin-Aqueous origin examined.

Letter XXIX. Petrifaction-Theories refpecting-Substitution -Adopted by Walch, Kirwan, Daubenton, Fourcroy, &c.Theory of Dr. Hutton and Mr. Playfair.

Letter xxxI. Theory of the petrifaction of wood propofedPetrified wood, filiceous, calcareous, and aluminous.

Letter xxx11. Siliceous pebbles-Conjectures as to the time, and mode of their formation-Crystalline fluid of ReaumurAgatine nodules-Theory of their formation-Opinions of Dr. Hutton and Mr. Play fair-Aqueous origin fupported.

Letter xxx111. Siliceous waters of Carlsbad-Of IcelandOf Bath-Siliceous tufa of the Geyfer-Vegetable calculi-Flint in the epidermis of plants.

Letter XXXIV. Petrified wood-Divided into filiceous, calcareous, aluminous, &c.-Siliceous divided into filicized wood

and

and filicized bituminous wood-The latter, into calcedonic, agatine, jafperine, and opaline.

Letter xxxv. Calcedonic wood-agatine-jafperized.

Letter XXXVI. Opaline wood-The refult of the union of filiceous and foft bituminous matter.

Letter XXXVII. Evident affinity between filicized, bituminous, or opaline wood and pitch-ftone-Analysis of opaline wood -Of pitch-ftone-Similarity inferred.

Letter XXXVIII. Semi-opal-Experiment on femi-opal of Tel. kebanya-Opal-Its wonderful properties-Analyfis by Klap roth-Horn-ftone and flint.

Letter XXXIX. Calcareous wood-Lime frequently held in folution, in water-Various forms of depofition-Confetto di Tivoli-Quarries of tufaceous ftone-Stalactitic caverns.

Letter XL. Calcareous foffil wood-Where found-Calcareous wood of Oxfordshire-Dorfetfhire-Somerfetfhire-AnalyfisMixture of fpar and bitumen-Calcareous wood of New SouthWales Aluminous wood, &c.

Letter XLI. Metallic foffil wood-Bog iron ore-Foffil wood, impregnated with iron-With copper, &c.

Letter XLII. Variety of petrified woods-Proceeding from original natural difference-From the labours of man.

Letter XLIII. Varieties of petrified woods continued-Thofe proceeding from the operations of infects-Starry ftone of Chem. nitz-Teredo marina.

Letter XLIV. Secondary vegetable foffils-In fchifti-In fand, ftone-In calcareous ftrata-In argillaceous nodules.

Letter XLV, Great difficulty of afcertaining even the genera of the plants which are thus preserved-Dorfiferous plants and cacti most common.

Letter XLVI. Foffil ftems of plants-Of the reed, &c.-Fof. filium incognitum.

Letter XLVII. Remarks on leaves contained in nodules-Impreffions of the fame fide of the leaf on each nodule-Accounted for by Juffieu, Schultz, &c.-Explanation propofed.

Letter XLVIII. Foffil flowers-Their existence doubtfulFoffil feeds and feed-veffels-Foffil fruits-Foffil loaves, Letter XLIX. Conclufion,

Mr. P. has rendered these letters much more pleasing and inftructive than the nature of the fubject might perhaps give reason to expect; and he has embellifhed his work by the delineations of the principal foffils of a vegetable origin, on nine elegant coloured plates, befides an engraved frontifpiece, and a vignette cut in wood.

It is not our intention to follow him, ftep by step, through the whole feries of thefe letters; we fhall only take notice of such parts of the work, and fhall transcribe such paffages