l x PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 



GEOLOGY. 



It has been observed that by far the greater number of 

 the larger earthquakes occur in groups, successive members 

 being separated from each other by a week or less. A violent 

 earthquake occurred at Etna on May 8th, 1914, destroying 

 several villages and causing loss of life. Another on May 

 26th in America, and one on May 27th at Panama, which 

 did not, however, damage the canal works, and another on 

 the same day near Tonga. Another in Asia Minor on 

 October 3rd, and one in Greece on October 17th. The most 

 destructive earthquake of which we have any record, though 

 not the most violent, occurred in Central Italy on January 

 13th, 1915. In Avezzano, which contained 11,000 

 inhabitants, the death rate was 90 per cent., whilst in two 

 neighbouring villages, 94 and 97 per cent, respectively of the 

 people perished. Before that, the highest known death rate 

 was 81 per cent., as far back as 1703. Italian observatories 

 recorded another on January 27th, of which no direct account 

 has been received, but which would probably be located in 

 Turkey or Greece. It has been discovered that acetylene 

 in contact with nickel at different temperatures in the 

 presence of hydrogen gives rise to products identical with 

 natural petroleums. These can be made, by varying the 

 conditions, to resemble the different varieties of petroleum 

 met with, and would suggest a new and probable theory for 

 its origin. The oilfields in Trinidad continue to produce 

 large quantities, and the Canadian ones are promising. I 

 will not attempt here to deal with the address of the President 

 of the Geological Section of the British Association, which 

 has for its subject the various theories of the structure of 

 the earth and the formation of the foldings and other features 

 of its crust. As he says, " the subject is not over new, and 

 whole fleets of hypotheses have been launched on this sea 

 of controversy " anyone who is interested can easily read 

 the address itself, and will gain much information by doing 

 so. 



