THE caoar. 29  
  off to the river to see its luck. Yes, and how lucky! But one small ·  
  fish adorns the hundred hooks! But to be a successful fisher you  
  must try, try again, and so they did. Hooks were rebaited and re- V -
  set. The day was spent in procuring fresh bait, wandering along ‘
  the bank or taking a boat ride. Then the hooks are tried again and .
  an 80—pound catfish comes up and gives his captors a lively struggle A
Z ere they place l1im in the bottom of the boat. Then comes the feast,
f and off for home we go. C
K Thus have been spent a few days on the banks of the Mississippi.
(To be continued.) -
  GEOLOGIC TIME.
la
gr? Theories as to the age of the earth. in so far as they are based
  upon facts at all, naturally fall under two heads :
p _ 1. Physical and astronomical.
li 2. Geological.
·_ First—The physical and astronomical theories:
. (zz). The purely physical,based upon data relating to the rate at
which the earth is cooling off`, and thence to the time that has l
elapsed since it was in a molten state."—Sir William Thompson.
l (b). Astronomical--Based upon data relating to the rate at which
tidal friction retards the rotation ot the earth, and thencs totime
. since the moon sepnatccl from it——the earth of course being molten C .
at the time.——George Darwin. C
r (0). Mixed Physical and Astronomical—Taking into consideration E
tidal friction, earth cooling, and also sun cooling and contraction.- f
, V Tait and others.
Second--Geological 1
(zz). Calculations based upon estimatxd total thickness of rock sed-
iments, and rate at which such sediments accumulate to-day along
shores and in secluded ocean basins.——Haugl1ton, Wallace, Williams
l and others.
(Z2). Method (a) modified by the introduction of time ratios based
upon the relative thickness of rocks formed in the different geologi-
. cal ages.—\\'alcott, Dana, Williams. Q
(c). Calculations based the rate of erosion since the ret1·eat of the
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