1. Millions of years ago the sun in its revolution threw off, as it had done on previous occasions, a sort of fire-mist, or nebulous scintillations, which floated and rolled through space for countless ages, gradually accumulating from the atmosphere in its revolution, thus swelling in size until it became a conglomeration of gas; and, continuing to grow and progress, it ripened into a fiery, liquid mass possessing the most intense heat. 2. After innumerable ages this fiery liquid mass began to cool, and finally formed a crust upon its surface. 3. As its interior elements began to evolve or emanate from its bosom, it formed a dense, heavy, murky atmosphere, almost as heavy as water, in which no living thing could have breathed or lived for a moment. 4. This atmosphere contained moisture, which in the course of time became condensed into globules forming drops, which descended to the earth in the shape of rain. 5. This rain, descending to the earth, cooled its surface, and eventually filled its vast cavities with water, and thus formed lakes, seas, and oceans. The boiling, heaving mass in the bowels of the earth made it very irregular in shape. 6. As soon as the surface of the earth became sufficiently cool, small swellings began to appear upon its surface, presenting the appearance of blisters, or boils. These outgrowths finally began to exhibit vegetable life; but for a long period of time they presented the appearance of rocks or stones. 7. In the mean time the washings from the surface of the earth were deposited in the seas and oceans, and, sinking to the bottom, in the course of time formed rocks. 8. These rocks, as they hardened, gave off an element of life, which in the course of time supplied the waters with various forms of animal or finny life, and thus originated mollusks, fishes, &c. 9. As the surface of the earth cooled and grew thicker, the elements of life diffused through the liquid mass finally made their appearance on the surface in the character of the lowest forms of vegetable life? such as mosses, lichens, ferns, &c. 10. As the surface of the earth thickened, and consequently accumulated the elements of vitality gave forth higher and still higher forms of vegetable life, finally the most matured forms of matter began to exhibit animal life. 11. The first species was the zoophite, a compound of vegetable and animal life, but possessing scarcely any of the functions of animal life except those of absorption and respiration, and these functions were but slightly manifested. 12. Succeeding the zoophite came the mollusks and various hard-shelled animal forms, which at first clung to the rocks, then fed on seaweeds and other vegetable substances, absorbing also from the atmosphere. 13. In this way various species of animals and birds and reptiles sprang up, ran their course, and then perished, to give place to higher forms.