)7o 



NA TURE 



[October 3, 1907 



the Universities and other Educational Institu- 

 tions by Prof. Bonncy, and reply by Prof. 

 Credner ; tlie Acadcniiis and Learned Societies 

 by Pi-of. Miers, and reply by Prof, liarrois; the 

 Geological Surveys by Prof. Lapworth, and reply by 

 Prof. Heim; Engineeiiny and Mining Institutions 

 by Prof. Hughes, and reply by Prof. Beck; the 

 Delegates and other Guests by Dr. Marr, and reply 

 by Prof. Stevenson ; and the Ladies by Prof. Watts, 

 and reply by Prof. Walther. 



On Friday, September 27, visits were paid to the 

 British Museum at Bloomsbury and to the Natural 

 History Museum at South Kensington, to the Geo- 

 logical .Survey and Museum of Practical Geology at 

 Jermyn .Street, and to the Victoria and .Albert Museum 

 at South Kensington. Demonstrations on objects of 

 interest were given by the oflicers at these institutions, 

 ;ind especial interest was manifested in the new model 

 of As.synt in the norlh-wesl Highlands (recently added 

 to the Museum of Practical (ieology), which was ex- 

 plained by Dr. B. N. Peach. A number of the foreign 

 and colonial visitors were also invited to St. Paul's 

 Cathedral, and were conducted through the edifice by 

 Canon .Scott Holland and Dr. Grabham (delegate ap- 

 pointed by the Royal College of Physicians). The 

 party was afterwards entertained at tea by Dr. Grab- 

 ham in the Chapter House. 



In the evening the foreign and colonial delegates 

 were entertained at dinner at the Criterion Restaurant 

 by the Geological Society Club. This club was founded 

 in 1S24 by Buckland, Fitlon, Greenough, Lyell, War- 

 burton, and others, with the object of affording to a 

 limited number of the leading members of the society 

 an opportunity of dining together on the evenings of 

 the society's meetings. The proceedings on the pre- 

 sent occasion lacked some of the exuberance and 

 animation that we read of in early records of the club, 

 when Buckland and Sedgwick and other geological 

 giants of old made merry. On the present occasion, 

 however, the proceedings had to be curtailed. 



The party, as in the case of the official dinner, was 

 photographed, and a congratulatory telegram was sent 

 to the distinguished veteran and past president. Dr. 

 H. Clifton Sorby, now in his eighty-second year, and 

 still engaged in scientific research. It may be men- 

 tioned that other veteran fellows of the society. Prof. 

 T. Rupert Jones, now eighty-eight, and tlie Rev. 

 Osmond Fisher, in his ninetieth year, bear testimony 

 to the healthy character of geological labour. Nor 

 should we forget the father of the society, the Rev. 

 W. H. Egerton, a brother of the late Sir Philip Eger- 

 ton, who was elected a fellow in 1S32, and at the age 

 of ninety-six is still rector of Whitchurch, in Shrop- 

 shire. A letter received from him during the present 

 year, in which he mentioned that he had been a pupil 

 of Buckland, was exhibited in the .society's museum. 



After the club dinner the party proceeded to the 

 conversazione, which was held at the Natural History 

 Museum. There a numerous company was received by 

 the president in the Central Hall, and the proceedings 

 were enlivened by a good programme of music, per- 

 formed by the string band of the Royal Engineers. 



During the week prior to the centenary reception 

 a number of excursions were made with the view of 

 exhibiting to the foreign members, correspondents 

 and others who came from abroad, the main features 

 of British geology. The longer excursions were ar- 

 ranged to occupy a week. 



The Palaeozoic formations were seen in the English 

 Lake District, famed for the early researches of Sedg- 

 wick ; in South Wales, where Murchison established 

 some of his Silurian divisions; and at Bristol, 

 Weston-super-Mare, and Cheddar, amid geologic 

 -scenes described by Buckland and Conybeare. The 

 NO. 1979, VOL. 76] 



Jurassic and Cretaceous rocks were viewed along the 

 Dorset coast at Lyme Regis, Bridport, and Wey- 

 mouth, a region full of associations with the work of 

 De la Beche and Buckl.ind ; and in the Isle of Purbeck 

 ,it Lulworth and Swanage, where Thomas Webster in 

 early days so admirably depicted the geological struc- 

 ture. The excursion to the Isle of Wight was aban- 

 doned, while that proposed for the Edinburgh district 

 was replaced by one to the north-west Highlands, to 

 .Assynt, Inchnadamph, and Loch Glen Coul for the 

 purpose of studying the displaced rock-masses brought 

 forward by the Glen Coul and Moine thrusts. This 

 last excursion was the more appropriate considering 

 that the long-looked-for Geological Survey memoir on 

 the North-west Highlands, embodying the researches 

 of Dr. Home, Dr. Peach, Dr. Teall, Mr. Clough, and 

 other colleagues, h.is just been published Under the 

 editorship of Sir .Archibald Geikie. 



•Some shorter excursions for two days were made to 

 May Hill, Westbury-on-.Severn and the Forest of Dean, 

 to Derbyshire, .'uid to the Crag District of Suffolk. 



On Saturday, .September 28, there was a series of 

 day e.xcursions, all well attended, to the Northampton 

 iron-ore district, to .\ylesbury, to Dover, to Box Hill, 

 Leatherhead and Dorking, to Reading, to Erith and 

 Crayford, and to Sudbury. Thus opportunity was 

 given of seeing many important and interesting geo- 

 logical sections. 



On Monday, .September 30, and following days, 

 the foreign and colonial visitors were entertained at 

 the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. At 

 Oxford the degree of D.Sc. honoris causa was con- 

 ferred upon Prof. Charles Barrois, of Lille, Prof. 

 Albert Heim, of Zurich, Prof. .Alfred Lacroix, of 

 Paris, Dr. .Albrecht Penck, of Berlin, Dr. Hans 

 Reusch, of Christiania, and Prof. (Geheimrath) 

 Ferdinand Zirkel, of Leipzig. At Cambridge the 

 degree of Sc.D. honoris causa was conferred jpon 

 Prof. Waldemar Christofer Brogger, of Christiania, 

 Prof. (Geheimrath) Hermann Credner, of Leipzig, 

 Prof. Louis Dollo, of Brussels, Prof. Albert de Lap- 

 parent, of Paris, and Prof. .Alfred Gabriel Nathorst, of 

 Stockholm. Prof. (Geheimrath) Heinrich Rosenbusch 

 was unfortunately prevented from attending. 



AH the recipients of the degrees are foreign members 

 of the Geological .Society. Thus was honour done to 

 the society and to many of its distinguished repre- 

 sentatives abroad. H. B. W. 



THE FOURTEENTH INTERNATIONAL CON- 

 GRESS OF HYGIENE AND DEMOGRAPHY. 

 THE fourteenth International Congress of Hygiene 

 and Demography, which meets every four years, 

 was held this ye.ir in Berlin from September 23 to 

 September 29, under the presidency of Prince Hein- 

 rich zu Schon.iich-Carolath, the vice-presidents being 

 Profs. Rubner and von Mayr. It was organised in 

 nine sections, comprising every branch of hygiene and 

 demography — bacteriology, parasitology and preven- 

 tive medicine ; general, industrial and school hygiene ; 

 port-sanitary and military and naval hygiene ; dietetics, 

 life-saving and statistics. Some 4000 members of all 

 nationalities attended the sittings, and were received 

 everywhere with the utmost courtesy and kindness. 

 The meetings were held in the Reichstag buildings, 

 which are central and admirably adapted for the pur- 

 pose. The question naturally suggests itself, would 

 the British Government pursue the enlightened policy 

 of placing the Houses of Parliament or similar build- 

 ings at the disposal of such a congress meeting in 

 England? 



The weather throughout was delightful, and many 

 social functions, including excursions, receptions 



