ON SEISMOLOQICAL INVESTIGATIONS. 35 



Seismological Investigations.— Twenty-tJiird Report of the Com- 

 mittee, consisting of Professor H. H. Turner {GhairmMn), 

 Mr. J. J. Shaw [Secretary), Mr. C. Vernon Boys, Dr. J. E. 

 Crombib, Sir Horace Darwin, Dr. C. Davison, Sir F. W. 

 Dyson, Sir E. T. Glazebrook, Professors C. G. Knott and 

 H. Lamb, Sir J. Larmor, Professors A. E. H. Love, H. M. 

 Macdonald, J. Perry, afid H. 0. Plummer, Mr. W. E. 

 Plummer, Professors K. A. Sampson and A. Schuster, Sir 

 Napier Shaw, Dr. G. T. Walker, and Dr. G. W. Walker. 



General. 



The Committee asks to be reappointed, with a grant of lOOZ. (including 

 printing), in addition to lOOi. from the Caird Fund already voted. The 

 Government Grant Fund administered by tlie Eoyal Society has voted 

 a subsidy of 2001. for 1919, as in recent years. 



It was hoped that some modification of this application might have 

 been made this year. Under the auspices of the International Eesearch 

 Council, which met at Bi'ussels July 18-28, a Geodetic and Geophysical 

 Union was constituted, with Seismolo'gy as one of its sections. This 

 involves ultimately the establishment of a Seismological Bureau or 

 Central Office, where different records may be collated and discussed, 

 and experimental and standardisation work carried out ; and in view 

 of all the chcumstances (including the death of Prince Galitzin and 

 the uncertain future of seismology in Eussia, the interruption of 

 relations with Germany, and the previous history of seismology in 

 the British Empire) it was hoped that some locality in England, and 

 probably Oxford, might be chosen as the locality for the Bureau. 



In anticipation of the Brussels meeting a National Eesearch Council 

 for Geophysics had been constituted under the auspices of the Eoyal 

 Society, and at the meeting of this Council on June 20 the followmg 

 resolution was adopted, on the motion of Professor Schuster: — 



' That an offer be made to the Section of Seismology of 

 the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics to locate its 

 Central Bureau at Oxford; but that the Executive Committee 

 of the Section have power to transfer it to another locality in 

 Great Britain on the recommendation of the National Eesearch 

 Council for Geophysics in that country.' 



When, however, the location of the Central Bm-eau came up for 

 preliminary discussion at Brussels, it was found that the French were 

 anxious that the claims of Strasbourg, now so dramatically restored 

 to them, should be considered. As a possible way of meeting both 

 wishes, a division of the work of the Bureau between Strasbourg and 

 Oxford was suggested; but at this point it was remarked that there 

 were still some points to be settled in connection with the formerly 

 existing International Seismological Association, and ultimately it was 

 decided to defer Ihe formation of the Seismological Section until these 



