The Lowest And Most Level Land Areas

It Is Evident That One Cannot Say Anything Demonstrable About The Problem Before Having Resolved These Preliminary Questions, And Yet We Hardly Possess The Necessary Information To Solve Some Of Them

But The Revolutions And Changes Which Are Responsible For The Present State Of The Earth Are Not Limited To The Upsetting Of The Ancient Strata And To The Ebbing Of The Sea After The Formations Of New Layers.

Why Has Not Anyone Seen That Fossils Alone Gave Birth To A Theory About The Formation Of The Earth, That Without Them, No One Would Have Ever Dreamed That There Were Successive Epochs In The Formation Of The Globe.

To Spread Healthy Ideas Among Even The Lowest Classes Of People, To Remove Men From The Influence Of Prejudice And Passion, To Make Reason The Arbiter And Supreme Guide Of Public Opinion; That Is The Essential Goal Of The Sciences; That Is How Science Will Contribute To The Advancement Of Civilization, And That Is What Deserves Protection Of Governments Who Want To Insure The Stability Of Their Power.

The Works Which This Man [joseph Banks] Leaves Behind Him Occupy A Few Pages Only; Their Importance Is Not Greatly Superior To Their Extent; And Yet His Name Will Shine Out With Lustre In The History Of The Sciences.