Reports and Proceedings — Geological Socieiij of London. 183 



The iiiA'aluable History of the Society which you prepared for our Centenary 

 Celebration is a mine of information, and at the same time a continuous and con- 

 sistent story well told. The heroic figures and the battles of long ago are brought 

 vividly before our eyes ; and the human side of our great predecessors is faithfully 

 touched in with many a quaint saying, odd mannerism, and witty story. As we 

 read we are conscious of a deepening appreciation of the great and lovable nature 

 of the men who helped to found and build up our science, and an increased pride in 

 the Society which they have transmitted to our care. 



Your retirement from the Geological Siuwey will doubtless be merely the intro- 

 duction to a new sphere of activity ; the good wishes of the Society will follow you 

 there, and we hope that you will live long to enjoy the powers conferred upon you 

 by your well-earned leisure. 



Mr. Woodward replied in the following words : — 



Mr. President, — In receiving from your hands the AVollaston Medal I feel 

 intensely gratified that my work has been adjudged by the Council to be worthy of 

 this great honour. 



I cannot claim to be one who engaged in the " Pursuit of Knowledge Under 

 Difficulties ", as the Society in my early days, and the Geological Survey afterwards, 

 directed my steps and made the pathways smooth. Thus, whether under command 

 or away from oflScial control, ambition was stirred to make as full acquaintance as 

 possible with the Geology of this country. In almost every part of it we have the 

 advantage of following in the footsteps of previous geological workers, and as 

 progress could not be made without heed to the lessons which they have taught, it is 

 natural that some of us should be led from the rocks into historical and biographical 

 trackways. In these directions, from the field to the study, my tasks have con- 

 ducted me ; and, while I recognize that, as a recipient of this award, I am highly 

 privileged, I rejoice in the weight attached to researches which indicate how much 

 we are indebted to those who have gone before us. 



I thank you, sir, for the very kind words with which you have accompanied this 

 presentation. 



The President then presented the Murchison Medal to Professor 

 Grenville A. J. Cole, F.Gr.S., addressing him as follows : — 



Professor Cole, — In awarding you the Murchison Medal the Council wish to 

 express their appreciation of the value of your contributions to Geology in general 

 and especially to Petrology. 



You have combined, in the happiest manner, work in the laboratory with observa- 

 tions in the field ; in addition, your petrological studies have been so arranged as to 

 lead naturally to comparative results, and by visiting allied areas you have caused 

 each in turn to throw light upon the other. The tachylytes of Scotland thus led 

 you to the variolitic masses of the Hautes Alpes, aud Hungary was thus made the 

 basis for the description of the rhyolites of Antrim. 



Impressed by the modifications suffered by igneous magmas through the absorption 

 of foreign material, you were led to important conclusions with regard to the granite 

 of Slieve Gallion in Londonderry ; and in Tyrone and Donegal you found in the 

 phenomena of igneous intrusion an explanation of the structure of gneisses which 

 had been previously attributed to dyuamo-metamorphic action. 



Since 190-5 you have been called on to direct the work of the Geological Survey of 

 Ireland, aud have endeavoured to connect the study of soils with the underlying 

 drift and older rocks. 



Not the least merit of your work is the endeavour to present your results in a pure 

 aud simple literary style. 



"We have made many excursions together on Irish soil, and I have had frequent 

 opportunities to observe, not without admiration, how keen is your interest, how 

 untiring your enthusiasm, and how ample your enjoyment when brought face to 

 face with the knotty problems of the field. 



The memory of our association in the past adds to the pleasure with which 

 I hand you the" Murchisou Medal. 



Professor Cole replied in the following words: — 



Mr. President,— I beg to thank you aud the Council of the Geological Society for 

 the generous and unexpected award made tome to-day. In your friendly references 



