124 Notes and Comments. 



lower, and that its displacement was due to the action of some 

 external fault. With regard to the former, there is no means 

 of deciding, from observations within the area of the overthrust, 

 whether the upper or the lower block had been displaced or 

 remained stationary, so that all controversy on this point 

 related merely to the words in which facts might be described. 

 With regard to the latter, it was shown that in the larger 

 overthrusts any general movement of the whole block affected, 

 under the impulse of some external force, was physically 

 impossible, whence it was deduced that the movements must 

 have taken place piecemeal, and that the cause must have 

 been generated within the area affected. As it is difficult to 

 conceive of any such action taking place in the dead matter of 

 the upper block, the conclusion is suggested that the originating 

 cause lay in the lower, and the ' overthrust ' becomes an 

 ' undercrawl.' It was not suggested that any change in 

 nomenclature should be introduced, as this would introduce 

 new dangers ; but these instances are sufficient to illustrate 

 the necessity of remembering the difference between the 

 technical and non-technical meaning of the words that we 

 use, and to avoid the errors of reasoning which may arise from 

 the use of the same word in more than once sense. 



THE SCARBOROUGH MUSEUM. 



We learn from The Museums Journal that ' the Philos- 

 ophical Society of Scarborough is said to be desirous of handing 

 its museum over to the Town Council. It is not said that the 

 Council is equally desirous of accepting so expensive a gift. 

 Whatever be the outcome, some responsible body ought to see 

 that the collections of real scientific importance, find a safe 

 house somewhere. Till a central museum council exists, the 

 local educational authority, or, faihng that, the Board itself, 

 ought to keep an eye on the matter.' The present writer has 

 been over to Scarborough more than once in connexion with 

 this matter, and is satisfied the Philosophical Society is 

 energetic and strong enough to look after its museum collections 

 until such time as they become public property, and the 

 sooner this happens the better for the public, and for education. 

 The Society has nothing to gain but the thanks of all educated 

 people for its generous suggestion. But Scarborough has not 

 yet got a pubhc library, so we cannot well expect it to be 

 abreast of other towns in the way of museums. 



THE MUSEUMS JOURNAL. 



The Museums Journal is to appear quarterly in future, 

 instead of monthly, for financial reasons. We think our 

 museum friends have made a great mistake in this change, and 

 curators will now only be acquainted with museum matters 

 when their ofiicial organ appears every three months. If, 



Naturalist 



