178 



A discussion then ensued upon a proposition of the President, 

 " that the Club should no longer be limited to 50 members," which 

 proposed alteration was finally determined upon. 



A party was afterwards organised to visit the "Marls tone" 

 quarries at Churchdown, in which several members joined ; whilst 

 others visited Highnam and Lassington, or inspected the Secretary's 

 interesting Cabinets of fossils. 



About 30 gentlemen sat down to dinner, which was served by 

 "mine host" of the "Earn" in a style which drew forth well- 

 merited encomiums. 



After dinner the following new members were elected : 

 J. J. Watson, Ph. D., F.G.S., &c., 

 Rev. F. Smithe, M.A., F.G.S., Churchdown. 

 Charles Prentice, Esq., Cheltenham. 

 Dr. Buchanan Washbourne, Gloucester. 

 W. C. Lucy, Esq., Gloucester. 



The President read a paper upon the " Oolites in the neighbour- 

 hood of Bath ;" the purport of which was to shew, that throughout 

 the Bath district, and extending even to the quarries at Dundry, the 

 Trigonia and Spinosa beds, which occupy the upper zone of the 

 " Inferior Oolite " in the neighbourhood of Gloucester and Chelten- 

 ham, and overlie the well-known freestone-beds in that district, are 

 there found resting immediately upon the so-called "Lias Sands," 

 and having above them beds of bastard freestone, which at Dundry, 

 in particular, assume the form of a true freestone, and are worked 

 as such. 



The reading of this paper gave rise to an animated discussion, 

 which assumed at length, to the regret of all listeners, the form of a 

 personal altercation. Surely, it is not out of place here, to express 

 the hope that, that most useful feature of our meetings, the discus- 

 sion of points of scientific interest and importance may be conducted 

 without acrimony and without " o'erstepping the modesty of nature." 

 Let us remember that there can be no dogmas in science. The ex- 

 perience of every day is teaching us how dangerous it is to lay down 

 laws, and to insist upon the adoption of theories as though they were 

 incontrovertible truths, more especially in Geology. The vast book 

 of Nature is open to all ; but he only is a true philosopher and a 

 worthy interpreter of her pages, who reads in a humble and teachable 

 spirit, feeling after all, how small a portion the wisest among us can 

 hope to have the privilege of contributing to the great ocean of 

 Truth, the depths and boundaries of which lie all undiscovered 

 beyond. " In Geology," says General Portlock, in his Address to 

 the Geological Society, " there can be no partizanship, as the object 

 is not to support the territorial rights of formations, but to arrive at 

 truth." 



With these observations, which I hope will not be deemed in- 

 trusive, I will proceed to give the substance of the remarks which 

 fell from our able colleague, Dr. Wright, with reference to the beds 

 referred to in the President's paper before-mentioned. He divides 



