Charles Lapworth : an Appreciation. 



A S announced in our April number, Professor Charles Lapworth 

 -^ died at his residence, Edgbaston, Birmingham, on March 13. 



For an account of his life and work our readers are referred to 

 an article — one of the " Eminent Living Geologist Series " — which 

 appeared in the July number of the Magazine in the year 190L At 

 the time when that article was written the main results of his work 

 in the field, the outcome of thirty-three years of labour, had already 

 been published, and we need therefore add but little to its records. 



In 1902 he was elected President of the Geological Society, a 

 position which he would certainly have occupied many years before 

 that date had circumstances permitted. In the following year he 

 dehvered his presidential address to the Society, to which further 

 allusion will be made presently. Unfortunately illness prevented 

 him from retaining the Presidency for the usual two years, and 

 geologists were accordingly dejjrived of a second address, which 

 would doubtless have attained the high level of that which was 

 actually delivered. 



In the year 1902 he was also appointed a member of the Eoyal 

 Commission to inquire into the coal resources of this country, and 

 the importance of his contributions to the report of the Geological 

 Committee of that Commission on the resources of the concealed 

 and unproved coalfields, published in 1905, is widely recognized. 



His work on applied geology became more varied as time 

 advanced, and he was in great request as a consulting geologist 

 on questions which concern the miner, the engineer, and others. 

 The city of Birmingham in particular was indebted to him for work 

 of this character, with the result that the hard-headed business- 

 man was taught the value of geology in a manner which specially 

 appealed to him. 



Among the later honours conferred upon him we may mention the 

 honorary degree of LL.D. of the University of Glasgow in 1912, 

 and the award of the Wilde Medal of the Manchester Philosophical 

 Society in 1905. We would note, also, that since our former account 

 of Lapworth was published, the monograph of the British graptolites, 

 by Miss Elles and Mrs. Shakespear, has been completed. It forms 

 a fitting conclusion to his great work on this group of organisms, 

 for, as its authors fully admit, it was inspired by Lapworth and he 

 superintended its production throughout. 



In attempting an appreciation of Lapworth's life-work, it must be 

 stated at the outset that he was pre-eminently a stratigrapher and 

 field-geologist, though he utilized all branches of geology in pursuing 

 his work, and in so doing added materially to our knowledge of 

 them. His work on the Lower Palaeozoic rocks of the Southern 

 Uplands of Scotland forms the foundation upon which his later 



