50 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. III. No. 54. 



what northwesterly coast line, now indi- 

 cated by an inshore sandspit, in the con- 

 structional area, and later to a more north- 

 erly line as shown by the building of the 

 present spit from the ' point of attachment ' 

 in sympathetic conformity to the cliff line 

 on the south. The migration of the sedi- 

 ment worn from the cliff around the end of 

 the point, the features of Race Point and 

 Long Point and the crescentic scouring of 

 the inner side of the cape, were all com- 

 mented on. G. K. Gilbert asked if there 

 is any evidence of the elevation or depres- 

 sion of the cape area en bloc, to which the 

 speaker replied that there is none. C. H. 

 Hitchcock recalled the idea of Louis Agassiz 

 that there had once been a continuous line 

 of drift from Cape Ann to the ' mainland ' 

 of Cape Cod, but the speaker said it had 

 been long disproved, and referred also to 

 historic records of islands off to the south- 

 east of Highland Lighthouse. In closing 

 the discussion President Shaler stated that 

 the ' mainland ' of the cape was formed by 

 a deposit of drift on an old preglacial divide 

 of Tertiary and Cretaceous strata, and that 

 the former river systems could be traced 

 with entire accuracj^ southward through 

 Vineyard sound. He dwelt also on the fear 

 of the Provincetown people lest the cape to 

 the east of them should be breached and 

 their harbor be filled with sand. The value 

 of jetties north of the ' point of attachment' 

 referred to above was emphasized. 



The Society then adjourned until the fol- 

 lowing day at 10 A. M. Thursday evening 

 manjT of the Fellows attended the interest- 

 ing lecture of Prof Wm. B. Scott on the 

 Tertiary Lake Basins of the "West, at the 

 Philadelphia Academy of Sciences, and all 

 who are accustomed to arc-light stereopti- 

 cons were strengthened in their faith in 

 them, as the lime light provided did not do 

 Prof Scott's slides justice. ISTeai^ly all the 

 Fellows also attended and enjoj'ed the re- 

 ception which was most hospitably extended 



to the visiting societies bj^ Dr. Horace Jayne, 

 to whom an expression of thanks is due. 



The Council of the Society met at 9 A. M. 

 Friday and transacted routine business. At 

 10 the Society assembled and devoted a few 

 minutes to executive business. The audit- 

 ing committee and the committee on photo- 

 graphs reported. The latter placed on ex- 

 hibition the collection which now amounts 

 to 1283 pictures, many of which are of more 

 than ordinary interest. 205 new ones were 

 added during the year. Great credit is due 

 the efficient chairman of the committee. Dr. 

 Geo. P. Merrill, of the United States Na- 

 tional Museum, for his efforts in its behalf. 

 The committee solicits donations which 

 may be sent to Dr. Merrill and which will 

 be duly acknowledged in the publications 

 of the Society. The Society also voted not 

 to have a session separate from Section E 

 of the American Association at the summer 

 meeting, but only one for executive busi- 

 ness and for the reading of papers by title. 

 Attention will also be given to arranging 

 excursions as heretofore. Fellows of the 

 Society are ui'ged to read their papers in 

 Section E, while publishing as before in the 

 Bulletin. It was announced that a group 

 photograph would be taken at the noon 

 recess. This was afterward done, with a 

 quite successful result, by Herbert Hoffman, 

 of 914 Arch street, Philadelphia. The busi- 

 ness finished, the Society listened to the an- 

 nual presidential address. It was delivered 

 by retiring President Shaler, and will ap- 

 pear in full in an early number of Science. 

 The subject was 'The Relations of Geologic 

 Science to Education,' and it was followed 

 by some discussion by Messrs. Gilbert, H. S. 

 "Williams and Wadsworth. The regular 

 papers were then taken up as follows: 



Plains of Marine and Subaerial Denudation. 



"W. M. Davis, Cambridge, Mass. 



Ramsej^'s explanation of plains of ab- 

 rasion as the product of marine denudation 



