SECTIONAL TRANSACTIONS— E. 345 



Tuesday, September 6, 



Mr. G. V. Jacks. — Recent changes in the wheat areas of the world. 



During the last twenty years the world's wheat area has increased by 

 over 20 per cent., and production by over 25 per cent. ; the increase in 

 population over the same period has probably not been more than 14 per 

 cent. At present there is probably underconsumption, as well as over- 

 production of wheat. The reasons for the discrepancy between supply 

 and demand are very complicated. They may be classed as economic, 

 scientific and political. Economic conditions have played a large part in 

 causing the recent expansion of the great wheat-fields of the world, but other 

 influences have also been at work in varying degrees in different countries. 

 Each of the great wheat areas of the world is considered separately, and the 

 conditions that have affected the cultivation of wheat in them are analysed. 



Dr. S. W. WooLDRiDGE. — The physical basis of the historical geography of 

 south-east England. 



Attention is called to the need for more accurate reconstruction of the 

 geographical environment of the early phases of settlement in S.E. England. 

 The area covered embraces the London Basin, the Weald and East Anglia. 

 In order to secure a framework for such reconstructions a tentative scheme 

 of regional subdivision is proposed. Subdivision is guided by considera- 

 tions of soil, vegetation and water-supply, and the regions proposed have 

 the character and status of the French pays. In the resultant aggregate 

 picture of geographical conditions, attention is draWn to the extent and dis- 

 tribution of areas suited to early clearing and settlement, and of ' negative ' 

 or barrier regions. Particular emphasis is laid upon the almost continuous 

 block of negative country which crosses the area west of London, extending 

 from the Chiltern plateau to the Rother Valley. The mutual relations in 

 space and time of the several important regional centres of early settlement 

 are considered, and a number of archaeological and historical hypotheses 

 are examined in the light of the geographical facts. 



Dr. Matthews. — The temperature anomalies of the Chilean coastlands in 

 relation to the classification of their climates, with special reference to 

 Koppen's classification of climate. 



A number of factors combine to give the Chilean coastlands a high degree 

 of abnormality in temperature regime. Among the features of temperature 

 regime three — namely, (a) the abnormal defect of summer temperature ; 

 (b) the very low annual range of temperature ; and (c) the slow change 

 of temperature with latitude — are of especial significance to the problem of 

 climatic classification. 



In brief, while the Chilean coast shows a normal range of climates through 

 desert, steppe, Mediterranean to constantly humid climates, only two of the 

 temperature divisions, out of the total of six recognised by Koppen for the 

 other western margins of the continents, can be found by the use of his 

 urunodified criteria. Thus, the hot desert and steppe of Koppen is not 

 recognisable from the temperature data if only mean monthly temperatures 

 are considered. (Actually these mean monthly temperatures are such that 

 a rigid adherence to the Koppen criteria would entail the inclusion of the 

 Chilean desert in the cold desert, grouping them in absurd alliance with 

 Mongolia !) Again, the olive-growing area of Chile fails to attain to the 



