ii8 



PEAT INVESTIGATION. 



A Meeting of Members and Associates interested in this subject was held 

 in the Geological Department, Leeds University, on January 12th, and 

 as time proved too short an adjournment was called to February nth. 



At the first meeting Dr. D. Forsyth gave an interesting account of 

 his work in prcy:)aring a bibliography of literature on Peat, and arrange- 

 ments are being made by the Library Committee of the University 

 to get together a selection of the most useful books. 



Mr. W. H. Pearsall read a paper on ' The Significance of Buried Trees 

 in Peat.' He referred to the work of Lewis, and suggested that the evi- 

 dence in favour of considerable climatic changes was based on insecure 

 grounds ; in the first place he pointed out that to-day trees are found 

 growing quite well at altitudes similar to those at which the buried 

 trees of the Peat are fomid, he cited pines in Scotland at 2200 feet, and 

 oak wood in the lake district at 1750 feet. The birch layers in Peat, be 

 suggested, were probably due to local improved drainage which again 

 got obstructed and peat formation resumed. 



The so-called arctic layers of the Pennines were based on Arcto- 

 staphylos, which even now comes down to 600 feet, and Empetrimi, 

 which now occurs down to sea level. 



He next drew attention to the increasing acidity of the soil in a series 

 commencing with ash woods, then oak, next birch and pine, followed 

 by moor with heather, etc., and finally the cotton grass Peats, his sugges- 

 tion being that in suitable areas this would be the natural sequence. 

 The topography of a district was an important factor, and an area like the 

 lake district, with sharp hill spurs and deep-cut ravines, did not offer 

 the stable conditions that are found on the Pennines, where the summits 

 are flat plateaux with escarpments giving ideal conditions for the 

 development of the Cotton Grass peat stage. 



An informal discussion followed, and several points of interest w^ere 

 cited. Miss E. Whitaker found that at Hai-wood Dale, where pine stumps 

 occur at the base of the Peat, pine pollen occurs throughout the whole 

 thickness of the Peat, suggesting a uniform climate. The amount of 

 change due to man's agency was also discussed, Mr. Pearsall having 

 considered this as insignificant when describing the change from woodland 

 to Peat. Cases were cited from Lyell and Geikie of overblown woods 

 turned to morass, and mention made of forest clearance by the Romans 

 both in Britain and on the Continent where this is recognised as a cause 

 of Peat accumulation ; also by Act of Parliament for the suppression 

 of outlaws and wolves, by Edward I. in Wales, and Henry H. in Ireland. 

 Gradual extinction of the hill woods would follow the destruction of 

 the lower shelter belts. 



It seems necessary to know the extent of the woods under the Peat, 

 and any information will be welcomed by the Committee. References 

 to the state of the country, the extent of woodland and of swamp, in the 

 earliest manuscripts will also help to a better understanding of the various 

 causes leading to the present conditions of our Peat covered hills. — 

 Chris. A. Cheetham. 



An article on ' Economic Ornithology,' in Bird Notes and News, 

 Vol. IX., No. 4, summarises recent papers on that subject. 



Science Progress for January is as full of good things as usual, and 

 well deserves its sub-title, ""A Quarterly Review of Scientific Thought.' 

 Its contents are far too numerous ever to be cpioted in the space at our dis- 

 posal, but among the essays and articles the following may be mentioned 

 as likely to be of especial interest to our readers : — ' The Inheritance 

 of Acquired Characters,' by Prof. MacBride ; ' The Cytological Problems 

 Arising from the Study of .\rtificial Parthenogenesis,' by D. Ward 

 Cutler ; ' The Soya Bean Problem.' by D. .M. .\tkins ; and ' The Function 

 of the Nucleolus in the Life of the .\nimal Cell.' by J. B. Gatenby. 



Naturalist 



