[Chapter I—ON THE DIFFERENT CLASSES OF ROCKS.]
Geology defined. — Successive Formation of the Earth’s Crust. — Classification of Rocks according to their Origin and Age. — Aqueous Rocks. — Their Stratification and imbedded Fossils. — Volcanic Rocks, with and without Cones and Craters. — Plutonic Rocks, and their Relation to the Volcanic. — Metamorphic Rocks, and their probable Origin. — The term Primitive, why erroneously applied to the Crystalline Formations. — Leading Division of the Work.
[Chapter II—AQUEOUS ROCKS—THEIR COMPOSITION AND FORMS OF STRATIFICATION.]
Mineral Composition of Strata. — Siliceous Rocks. — Argillaceous. — Calcareous. — Gypsum. — Forms of Stratification. — Original Horizontality. — Thinning out. — Diagonal Arrangement. — Ripple-mark.
[Chapter III—ARRANGEMENT OF FOSSILS IN STRATA—FRESH-WATER AND MARINE.]
Successive Deposition indicated by Fossils. — Limestones formed of Corals and Shells. — Proofs of gradual Increase of Strata derived from Fossils. — Serpula attached to Spatangus. — Wood bored by Teredina. — Tripoli formed of Infusoria. — Chalk derived principally from Organic Bodies. — Distinction of Fresh-water from Marine Formations. — Genera of Fresh-water and Land Shells. — Rules for recognising Marine Testacea. — Gyrogonite and Chara. — Fresh-water Fishes. — Alternation of Marine and Fresh-water Deposits. — Lym-Fiord.
[Chapter IV—CONSOLIDATION OF STRATA AND PETRIFACTION OF FOSSILS.]
Chemical and Mechanical Deposits. — Cementing together of Particles. — Hardening by Exposure to Air. — Concretionary Nodules. — Consolidating Effects of Pressure. — Mineralization of Organic Remains. — Impressions and Casts: how formed. — Fossil Wood. — Goppert’s Experiments. — Precipitation of Stony Matter most rapid where Putrefaction is going on. — Sources of Lime and Silex in Solution.
[Chapter V—ELEVATION OF STRATA ABOVE THE SEA.—HORIZONTAL AND INCLINED STRATIFICATION.]
Why the Position of Marine Strata, above the Level of the Sea, should be referred to the rising up of the Land, not to the going down of the Sea. — Strata of Deep-sea and Shallow-water Origin alternate. — Also Marine and Fresh-water Beds and old Land Surfaces. — Vertical, inclined, and folded Strata. — Anticlinal and Synclinal Curves. — Theories to explain Lateral Movements. — Creeps in Coal-mines. — Dip and Strike. — Structure of the Jura. — Various Forms of Outcrop. — Synclinal Strata forming Ridges. — Connection of Fracture and Flexure of Rocks. — Inverted Strata. — Faults described. — Superficial Signs of the same obliterated by Denudation. — Great Faults the Result of repeated Movements. — Arrangement and Direction of parallel Folds of Strata. — Unconformability. — Overlapping Strata.
[Chapter VI—DENUDATION.]
Denudation defined. — Its Amount more than equal to the entire Mass of Stratified Deposits in the Earth’s Crust. — subaërial Denudation. — Action of the Wind. — Action of Running Water. — Alluvium defined. — Different Ages of Alluvium. — Denuding Power of Rivers affected by Rise or Fall of Land. — Littoral Denudation. — Inland Sea-Cliffs. — Escarpments. — Submarine Denudation. — Dogger-bank. — Newfoundland Bank. — Denuding Power of the Ocean during Emergence of Land.
[Chapter VII—JOINT ACTION OF DENUDATION, UPHEAVAL, AND SUBSIDENCE IN REMODELLING THE EARTH’S CRUST.]
How we obtain an Insight at the Surface, of the Arrangement of Rocks at great Depths. — Why the Height of the successive Strata in a given Region is so disproportionate to their Thickness. — Computation of the average annual Amount of subaërial Denudation. — Antagonism of Volcanic Force to the Levelling Power of running Water. — How far the Transfer of Sediment from the Land to a neighbouring Sea-bottom may affect Subterranean Movements. — Permanence of Continental and Oceanic Areas.
[Chapter VIII—CHRONOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION OF ROCKS.]
Aqueous, Plutonic, volcanic, and metamorphic Rocks considered chronologically. — Terms Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary; Palæozoic, Mesozoic, and Cainozoic explained. — On the different Ages of the aqueous Rocks. — Three principal Tests of relative Age: Superposition, Mineral Character, and Fossils. — Change of Mineral Character and Fossils in the same continuous Formation. — Proofs that distinct Species of Animals and Plants have lived at successive Periods. — Distinct Provinces of indigenous Species. — Great Extent of single Provinces. — Similar Laws prevailed at successive Geological Periods. — Relative Importance of mineral and palæontological Characters. — Test of Age by included Fragments. — Frequent Absence of Strata of intervening Periods. — Tabular Views of fossiliferous Strata.
[Chapter IX—CLASSIFICATION OF TERTIARY FORMATIONS.]
Order of Succession of Sedimentary Formations. — Frequent Unconformability of Strata. — Imperfection of the Record. — Defectiveness of the Monuments greater in Proportion to their Antiquity. — Reasons for studying the newer Groups first. — Nomenclature of Formations. — Detached Tertiary Formations scattered over Europe. — Value of the Shell-bearing Mollusca in Classification. — Classification of Tertiary Strata. — Eocene, Miocene, and Pliocene Terms explained.
[Chapter X—RECENT AND POST-PLIOCENE PERIODS.]
Recent and Post-pliocene Periods. — Terms defined. — Formations of the Recent Period. — Modern littoral Deposits containing Works of Art near Naples. — Danish Peat and Shell-mounds. — Swiss Lake-dwellings. — Periods of Stone, Bronze, and Iron. — Post-pliocene Formations. — Coexistence of Man with extinct Mammalia. — Reindeer Period of South of France. — Alluvial Deposits of Paleolithic Age. — Higher and Lower-level Valley-gravels. — Loess or Inundation-mud of the Nile, Rhine, etc. — Origin of Caverns. — Remains of Man and extinct Quadrupeds in Cavern Deposits. — Cave of Kirkdale. — Australian Cave-breccias. — Geographical Relationship of the Provinces of living Vertebrata and those of extinct Post-pliocene Species. — Extinct struthious Birds of New Zealand. — Climate of the Post-pliocene Period. — Comparative Longevity of Species in the Mammalia and Testacea. — Teeth of Recent and Post-pliocene Mammalia.