!)(! KKPORTS OK SOCIETIKS. 



March 9th, at the University Museum, Professor Westwood, M.A., F.L.S., prosirt- 

 ing.— E. H. I'oulton, Esq., M.A., delivered a lecture on the seoloRical causes of 

 varied scenery. He commenced by desci'ibing tlie term " rock," because it was 

 on the various forms of rock of harder or softer nature that the various denuding 

 agents, subaerial or otherwise, acted with greater or lesser power. The action 

 of the atmosi)here, the rainfall, and the great power exerted by glaciers 

 over rocks, W(iaring them away in different manners, were fully described. 

 Taking a stand-i)oint, the Lecturer said, on one of the Malvern hills, and looking 

 eastward, one would observe the hills dwindling gradually till the gently-undu- 

 lating country, such as his audience were familiar with, presented itself. This 

 country was all formed of rocks of a newer era than the hill of Gneiss on which 

 the observer stood. Ijooking west to Wales, the mountains became higher, and 

 of more rugged outline, just as they were comjiosed of older and harder strata —the 

 Cambrian or Silurian rocks— while on the eastern side they were made up of 

 newer and softer rocks — oolites, lias, *c. — with their strata gently dipping east- 

 ward. So that, from the relative hardness of the rocks was caused, on the one 

 hand, the rugged, mountainous district of \\ales, while the softer rocks produced 

 the gently-undulating land of central and eastern England. Mr. Poulton then 

 gave a striking instance of a piece of this flat, fertile region being contained in a 

 mountainous district, as in the Vale of Clwyd, about St. Asaph. So, too, the 

 valley of the Conway showed that an older and a newer formation of a similar rock 

 gave a distinct character to the scenery ; the lower and older Silurian, on one 

 side, made steep cliffs, on which but little vegetation, save the pine could grow : 

 while the other, of softer and newer rock (the tipper Silurian i made a gentle 

 slope, on which grew a rich vegetation. Mr. Poulton then alluded to the fact 

 that the short and sleep hills were all met with in going from Oxford to Heading, 

 although the latter place was really lower than Oxford ; while, on the 

 return journey, long, gentle inclines were met with ; and this was caused by the 

 strike of all the strata facing northwards, while the gentle inclines were down 

 the "dip" of the strata. The sinuous course of the river itself was also 

 determined by the rocks, the river running along the out-crop, and then 

 suddenly cutting its way through the ridges. He then descril)ed the terms 

 " synclinal " and " anticlinal," and gave Snowdon as an interesting example of 

 the former. The lecture was concluded by a description of geology, as influencing 

 plant and animal distribution, the migration of birds, and the specialisation of 

 animal forms. Mr. Macpherson read a short note on the niditication of the 

 Serin-linch, in the Isle of Wight, which had been noticed by Jlrs. Prestwich, in 

 18G8, near Freshwater, this being almost the tlrst verified occurrence in Great 

 Britain. A collection of plants from Cincinnati was exhibited by Mr. G. C. 

 Druce. 



BLACKBUEN FIELD NATURALISTS' SOOIETY.-Tlie present session 

 was opened by a meeting and conversazione, held on IGth February last, in the 

 Free Library. The Mayor of llackburu presided, and recommended the 

 members to devote themselves chiefly to the study of local natural history. 

 The Kev. J. Shortt, M.A., one of the vice-presidents, read a most interesting 

 paper on ■' The Study of Nature in the Field," in which he enlarged on it as a 

 fascinating and instructive study. He claimed for the Society that it was a truly 

 philanthropic one. "Its object," he said, "is to promote genuine human enjoy- 

 ment, by furnishing men and women with an unfailing, ine.Khaustible source of 

 amusement and intei'est. There can be no tedium of life to one who enters 

 thoroughly into its spirit." A large display of microscopical and other natural 

 history oljjects then engaged the attention of the company, and Mr. J. D. Geddes, 

 the secretary, exhibited a variety of living and other objects by means of the 

 oxyhydrogeu inici-oscope. A well-arranged musical iirogramme added to the 

 pleasures of a most eujoyalde eveuing. 



EuRAiw. — In February number, page 34, omit bottom line. Page 

 35, insert same line between second and third lines from bottom. 

 Page 30, lines !) to 11. read 0-014 in.. O-QOl in., 0-()03 in. bv ()-002 in. 



