CHAPTER XIV.
THE BLACK RIVER.
The portion of the terrestrial globe occupied by water is estimated at 80,000,000 of acres. This liquid mass includes 2,258,000,000 of cubic miles, and forms a sphere, of a diameter of sixty leagues, whose weight is three quintillions of tons. To understand this it must be stated that the quintillion is to the billion as the billion is to the unit; so there are as many billions in a quintillion as there are units in a billion. Now this mass of water is nearly as much as would flow through all the rivers in the world during a period of forty years.
During the geological epoch, when fire succeeded water, the ocean was universal. Then, by degrees, the summits of mountains appeared; islands emerged; disappeared again under partial floodings; re-appeared; united themselves; formed continents; and, at length, the earth remained as we see it. The solid had gained from the liquid 37,000,657 square miles.
The configuration of the continents permits of the
