| CHAPTER I |
| The Compilation of Earth History |
| PAGE |
| The sources of the history—Subdivisions of geology—The study of earth features and their significance—Tabular recapitulation—Geological processes not universal—Change, and not stability, the order of nature—Observational geology versus speculative philosophy—The scientific attitude and temper—The value of the hypothesis—Heading references | 1 |
| CHAPTER II |
| The Figure of the Earth |
| The lithosphere and its envelopes—The evolution of ideas concerning the earth’s figure—The oblateness of the earth—The arrangement of oceans and continents—The figure toward which the earth is tending—Astronomical versus geodetic observations—Changes of figure during contraction of a spherical body—The earlier figures of the earth—The continents and oceans at the close of the Paleozoic era—The flooded portions of the present continents—The floors of the hydrosphere and atmosphere—Reading references | 8 |
| CHAPTER III |
| The Nature of the Materials in the Lithosphere |
| The rigid quality of our planet—Probable composition of the earth’s core—The earth a magnet—The chemical constitution of the earth’s surface shell—The essential nature of crystals—The lithosphere a complex of interlocking crystals—Some properties of natural crystals, minerals—The alterations of minerals—Reading references | 20 |
| CHAPTER IV |
| The Rocks of the Earth’s Surface Shell |
| The processes by which rocks are formed—The marks of origin—The metamorphic rocks—Characteristic textures of the igneous rocks—The classification of rocks—Subdivisions of the sedimentary rocks—The different deposits of ocean, lake, and river—Special marks of littoral deposits—The order of deposition during a transgression of the sea—The basins of deposition of earlier ages—The deposits of the deep sea—Reading references | 30 |
| CHAPTER V |
| Contortions of the Strata within the Zone of Flow |
| The zones of fracture and flow—Experiments which illustrate the fracture and flow of solid bodies—The arches and troughs of the folded strata—The elements of folds—The shapes of rock folds—The overthrust fold—Restoration of mutilated folds—The geological map and section—Measurement of the thickness of formations—The detection of plunging folds—The meaning of an unconformity—Reading references | 40 |
| CHAPTER VI |
| The Architecture of the Fractured Superstructure |
| The system of the fractures—The space intervals of joints—The displacements upon joints: faults—Methods of detecting faults—The base of the geological map—The field map and the areal geological map—Laboratory models for study of geological maps—The method of preparing the map—Fold vs. fault topography—Reading references | 55 |
| CHAPTER VII |
| The Interrupted Character of Earth Movements: Earthquakes and Seaquakes |
| Nature of earthquake shocks—Seaquakes and seismic sea waves—The grander and the lesser earth movements—Changes in the earth’s surface during earthquakes: faults and fissures—The measure of displacement—Contraction of the earth’s surface during earthquakes—The plan of an earthquake fault—The block movements of the disturbed district—The earth blocks adjusted during the Alaskan earthquake of 1899 | 67 |
| CHAPTER VIII |
| The Interrupted Character of Earth Movements: Earthquakes and Seaquakes (concluded) |
| Experimental demonstration of earth movements—Derangement of water flow by earth movement—Sand or mud cones and craterlets—The earth’s zones of heavy earthquake—The special lines of heavy shock—Seismotectonic lines—The heavy shocks above loose foundations—Construction in earthquake regions—Reading references | 81 |
| CHAPTER IX |
| The Rise of Molten Rock to the Earth’s Surface; Volcanic Mountains of Exudation |
| Prevalent misconceptions about volcanoes—Early views concerning volcanic mountains—The birth of volcanoes—Active and extinct volcanoes—The earth’s volcano belts—Arrangement of volcanic vents along fissures, and especially at their intersections—The so-called fissure eruptions—The composition and the properties of lava—The three main types of volcanic mountain—The lava dome—The basaltic lava domes of Hawaii—Lava movements within the caldron of Kilauea—The draining of the lava caldrons—The outflow of the lava floods | 94 |
| CHAPTER X |
| The Rise of Molten Rock to the Earth’s Surface; Volcanic Mountains of Ejected Materials |
| The mechanics of crater explosions—Grander volcanic eruptions of cinder cones—The eruption of Volcano in 1888—The eruption of Taal volcano on January 30, 1911—The materials and the structure of cinder cones—The profile lines of cinder cones—The composite cone—The caldera of composite cones—The eruption of Vesuvius in 1906—The sequence of events within the chimney—The spine of PelÉ—The aftermath of mud flows—The dissection of volcanoes—The formation of lava reservoirs—Character profiles—Reading references | 115 |
| CHAPTER XI |
| The Attack of the Weather |
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