Anniversary Address to the Royal Geological Society. 207 
of Mineralogy and Geology of the Faculty of Science in Toulouse, 
and died October 5, 1878, at the age of 78 years. 
But now we must return to ourselves for a time. Within the 
last year no less than two books on the Geology of Ireland have 
been brought out by Fellows of this Society. I say Fellows of 
this Society, for though both the gentlemen referred to belong to 
the Geological Survey, those books are not official manifestos ; 
they do not simply embody the official geological creed of either 
of their authors; they are far more interesting and valuable to 
us than if they did so. I mean Professor Hull’s Physical Geology 
and Geography of Iveland, and Mr. G. H. Kinahan’s Manual of 
the Geology of Ireland. Fortunately for us each work was un- 
dertaken, and all but compieted, before it. was known that the 
other was in hands; if it had been otherwise we might, perhaps, 
have had only one of the two. But though this was so, we might 
almost have imagined that there had been a mutual arrangement 
whereby the two books might not interfere. The general plan 
and object of each are different, and though, of course, to some 
extent, the same material is common to both, yet it is generally 
introduced in a different way, and regarded from a different point 
of view. So that there is ample room for both books, and neither 
can be spared because we have the other. It so happens that 
these two books correspond respectively to two similar books de- 
voted to the geology of England. It is expressly mentioned in 
one of those books that I do not agree with all the positions 
therein taken up. If either had come out singly, perhaps I might 
have ventured to give some review of its contents; but if I were 
rash enough to criticise both, the authors would doubtless com- 
bine together at once to annihilate me. But this I can do with 
safety to myself, and also with cordiality and a clear conscience, 
viz— congratulate the Society on the emanation from within itself 
of two so useful and valuable works on the geology of our island, 
supplying a want which had long been keenly felt, and on the 
removal of the stigma which the existence of that unsupplied 
want was calculated to cast upon us. 
There are various other subjects on which we might dwell, such 
as the meeting of the British Association in Dublin in August last, 
with more special reference to the proceedings of the Geological 
