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The excerpt represents the core issue or deciding factor on which you must meditate, and is drawn from The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin: and then as quietly retreats; secondly, some time afterwards,
the whole body of the sea retires from the coast, and then
returns in waves of overwhelming force. The first movement
seems to be an immediate consequence of the earthquake
affecting differently a fluid and a solid, so that their
respective levels are slightly deranged: but the second case
is a far more important phenomenon. During most earthquakes,
and especially during those on the west coast of
America, it is certain that the first great movement of the
waters has been a retirement. Some authors have attempted
to explain this, by supposing that the water retains its level,
The Voyage of the Beagle |
