656 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXIV. No. 621. 



quadrangle. Brief preliminary notices of the 

 new conclusions, which were printed in the 

 Journal of Geology and the American Jour- 

 nal of Science, aroused the stout opposition 

 of the geologist in charge of geology. 



After thoroughly testing the new hypoth- 

 esis during several field seasons, a monograph 

 of approximately 600 manuscript pages and 

 numerous plates was prepared as my final 

 report upon the structure of the district. This 

 monograph embodies my conclusions and rep- 

 resents the best work of which I am capable. 

 In submitting it I made the request, upon the 

 basis of the' novelty of certain of the conclu- 

 sions reached, that the report be first read by 

 Mr. G. K. Gilbert. I enjoyed no special per- 

 sonal relations with Mr. Gilbert, but placed 

 confidence in him because of his ripe experi- 

 ence, great ability, and scientific temper. Mr. 

 Gilbert kindly consented to undertake this 

 task, and his extensive critique of the mono- 

 graph, prepared after several days' study of 

 it, while it did not accept as proven the more 

 novel conclusions of the paper, yet was withal 

 so fair a review and so commendatory of the 

 way in which the report had been prepared, 

 that I could not feel other than complimented 

 by it. Mr. Gilbert pointed out, however, that 

 the larger conclusions reached, if well founded, 

 must discredit in some measure the work of 

 other geologists both within and without the 

 district specially studied. For this reason 

 he recommended that the monograph be ex- 

 amined still more carefully by some other 

 member of the staff of the survey, and, if 

 possible, with the author in the field. The 

 monograph was then referred to Mr. Bailey 

 Willis whose report (as stated in correspond- 

 ence of Mr. Hayes) recommended the publica- 

 tion of the monograph by the survey, but con- 

 sidered that the author's reputation would be 

 better served by the omission from the mono- 

 graph of certain chapters. The substance of 

 these radical chapters has since been pub- 

 lished in slightly abbreviated form as a bul- 

 letin of the Geological Society of America 

 (' Lineaments of the Atlantic Border Region,' 

 Vol. 15, 1904, pp. 483-506, pis. 45-47. Also 

 Hept. Eighth Intern. Geographic Congress, 

 1904, pp. 193-203), and the letters which I 



have received from prominent geologists both 

 here and abroad indicate that the opinion of 

 this reviewer has not been an altogether gen- 

 eral one. 



The recent investigation of earthquakes has 

 brought a wholly unexpected verification of 

 the general correctness of the views expressed 

 in the above paper (see my paper, entitled 

 ' Some Principles of Seismic Geology,' with 

 an introduction by Eduard Suess, president of 

 the Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Beitrdge 

 zur Geophysih, Leipzig, Vol. 8, heft 2, 1906). 



After the examination by Mr. Willis the 

 monograph was referred by the geologist in 

 charge of geology to Mr. George Otis Smith, 

 who had been born in a remote corner of New 

 England and was, therefore, presumably the 

 one best qualified to discuss the geology of 

 that complicated region. When placed beside 

 the report of Mr. Gilbert, the report of Mr. 

 Smith emphasized by its sweeping statements 

 the latter's youth and his more recent gradua- 

 tion from college. The monograph had re- 

 vealed to him absolutely nothing of value, 

 unless perhaps what had already been pub- 

 lished ; and in no measured terms the methods 

 of the author were condemned. Prompt ac- 

 tion upon this report was taken by Mr. Hayes 

 in refusing the publication of the monograph. 

 At the same time an order was sent me to at 

 once complete the manuscript and illustra- 

 tions for the Litchfield folio (which covers a 

 portion of the area), the correctness or error 

 of which would then be adjudicated through 

 conference in the field. 



When the folio had been prepared I found 

 that in place of a committee made up of non- 

 partisan geologists, my work was to be judged 

 by Messrs. Hayes and Smith, who throughout 

 had not concealed their unfavorable opinion 

 of the work. Messrs. A. C. Spencer and 

 Joseph Barrell were, however, present at the 

 conference (in April, 1905) as guests, the 

 former upon invitation of Mr. Hayes, the 

 latter upon my own initiative. 



The Newark basin of the Pomeraug Valley 

 having afforded the key to the structure, it 

 was first gone over, and I believe the expres- 

 sions of Messrs. Barrell, Spencer and Smith 

 warrant me in saying that the observations of 



