8 PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 



the Arctic zone, but species are found there which do not 

 occur in the North, for instance, seven mosses out of 34 col- 

 lected by one expedition are new to science. 



GEOLOGY. 



At a meeting of the International Association of Seismology 

 held at Manchester last July, two types of small earthquake 

 waves were alluded to, which are only to be perceived by 

 delicate instruments, one apparently due to the action of 

 the wind over a large land surface, the other suspected to 

 be caused by the striking of waves on the sea shore. An instru- 

 ment has been set up to test this. The reports of various 

 luminous phenomena in connection Avith earthquakes, such 

 as lights playing on distant hills during the Valparaiso earth- 

 quake of 1906, have led to experiments being made which 

 shew that rock surfaces at times exhibit sufficient luminosity 

 to affect a photographic plate, but the origin and nature of 

 this light is still uncertain. Violent earthquakes occurred 

 in Mexico on June 7 and in the islands of Zante and 

 Cephalonia on Jan. 24 last, whilst about the same date two 

 or more slight ones took place in Monmouthshire and parts 

 of Scotland, also a somewhat severe one in S. Africa on Feb. 

 20 of this year. The effect of a tidal load of 10 feet at Ryde 

 has been shewn to be a deflection of the land of 0-85", and at 

 Bidstone, in Cheshire, at two miles inland, 0'2". An eruption 

 of Etna commenced on Sept. 10, and a much more severe one 

 took place on Jan. 30 in the Taai volcano in the Philippines, 

 which buried the neighbouring villages, causing great loss of 

 life. Owing to other causes, probably the dry summer and 

 wet winter, an immense fall of the cliff took place at Dover 

 on Dec. 31, producing great alteration in its appearance. 

 The final report of the Coast Erosion Commission has been 

 issued shewing that in the past 35 years, 6,640 acres have been 

 lost and 48,000 reclaimed from the sea, so that, on the whole, 

 England is distinctly growing in size. They deal with various 



