This visit is especially interesting as it provides some glimpses in Darwin’s geological background at the beginning of the voyage of the Beagle (1831-1836). It’s therefore even more surprising to read in Darwin’s later autobiography (1876-1881) as follows: "The very first place which I examined, namely St. Jago, in the Cape de Verde islands, showed me clearly the wonderful superiority of Lyell’s manner of treating geology." Darwin also emphasizes how the visit of St. Jago converted him to Lyell’s geology. But from the geological notes he made during the field trip on St. Jago it emerges that young geologist Darwin was still struggling to accept this idea. More important, accepting slow geological processes made it necessary also to accept a very old earth.

Source: Forbes January 17, 2017 14:30 UTC