440 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. I. No. 16. 



as of fundamental impox-tance to such teach- 

 ers by placing them in the first two num- 

 bers of a series of geographical monographs. 

 Much good must result from this earnest 

 inculcation of modern physiographical 

 principles. 



The character of the two monographs may 

 be inferred from the following outlines : 

 The ' processes ' open with an account of the 

 three moving envelopes of the earth — air, 

 water and rock. Their mutual interpene- 

 tration and characteristic movements are de- 

 scribed ; the more important headings being 

 rainfall, run-off, floods ; kinds of rock, struc- 

 ture of the rock envelope, age of rocks, in- 

 terchange of land and sea ; vulcanism, dias- 

 trophism and gradation. The ' features ' 

 are classified as plains and plateaus of 

 various kinds, mountains, valleys, hills, 

 cliffs, special forms, stream channels and 

 cataracts, fountains, caverns, lakes, marshes, 

 coast forms , islands . The intelligent teacher 

 cannot fail to be interested and broadened 

 by a careful study of these suggestive pages. 



There are, however, a number of consider- 

 ations which cast a shade of doubt on the 

 plan of beginning this series of monographs 

 with two general essays of comparatively 

 abstract treatment. From the very nature 

 of the case, when so small a space as thirty 

 pages is allowed for subjects so large as 'phys- 

 iographic processes ' and ' physiographic 

 features,' there can be little room saved 

 for the introduction of concrete illustrations. 

 Consequently, instead of inculcating physio- 

 graphic process by example, it is here in- 

 culcated almost entirely by abstract gen- 

 eralities. Our teachers are already educated 

 rather too much in this way ; they have 

 not enough knowledge of fact to take the 

 best advantage of so rich a feast of generali- 

 zation as is here presented. The same com- 

 ment may be made on the classification of 

 features ; the broad scheme of classification 

 here announced is of much value to the ex- 

 pert, who has already in mind a multitude 



of examples with which to fill each pigeon- 

 hole in the scheme ; but it is of much less 

 value to the school teacher, whose knowl- 

 edge of geograpliical facts is generallj- very 

 narrow, except in so far as they are con- 

 cerned with empirical data, such as the posi- 

 tion of cities, the length of rivers or the 

 height of mountains. With features as the 

 result of processes, teachers have heretofore 

 had verj' little to do ; and they can hardly 

 now be ready to use an extended classifica- 

 tion of land forms, few of which are made 

 real by illustration or example. It may be 

 doubted whether these general monographs 

 would not have met a better appreciation 

 two or three j'ears hence, after other mono- 

 graphs had presented in detail a good num- 

 ber of individual features as the result of 

 particular processes. 



There is another way in which the dis- 

 cussion of processess and the classification 

 of features as here given may embarrass the 

 teacher. He may naturally expect, fi'om the 

 leading place of these monographs, that they 

 are authoritative as to plan and terms, and 

 that the latter monographs will follow the 

 beginning thus made. But, as a matter of 

 fact, it is at present too early in the develop- 

 ment of the new subject of physiography to 

 expect any one plan of description or any 

 one scheme of terminology to gain general 

 adoption; particularly a plan or scheme not 

 hitherto published, not modified by expert 

 criticism, and not generally assented to by 

 various investigators. As a suggestion to 

 his fellow experts, these plans of treatment 

 from one of so wide a knowledge as Major 

 Powell are of high value ; but as formula- 

 tions of method, according to which later 

 writers of monographs should arrange their 

 own studies, they are of unknown value, 

 because as yet untested by repeated use and 

 public criticism. It is highly probable that 

 each of the later writers of the monographs 

 will depart from the plan here presented 

 and introduce methods and terms of his 



