Meports and Proceedings — Geological Society of London. 43 



Jermyn Street, where a number of individuals present themselves 

 daily for the purpose of obtaining geological information. Among 

 these are well-sinkers, stone-raerchants, mine agents, colliery pro- 

 prietors, landowners, parsons, medical officers and others, and all 

 the knowledge possessed is invariably at the service of the seeker. 

 A man may come with a bag of minerals and humbly desire their 

 names, or he may bring somewhat furtively from his pocket a lump 

 of iron-ore, saying not whence he obtained it, and ask whether it 

 would pay for working. But apart from such comparatively trivial 

 matters, information is more and more in request concerning good 

 sources of water-suj)ply throughout the kingdom, and the questions 

 of drainage and health, upon which geology is calculated to throw so 

 much light, must continue to engage public attention. 



The service that may be rendered to individuals indirectly 

 benefits the country at large. The money that has been wasted in 

 fruitless trials for coal has been A-ery great, and the Geological 

 Survey has been instrumental in checking a large amount of such 

 waste, while at the same time it has indicated many sources of future 

 supply of mineral wealth. There is, however, no need to dwell 

 upon the economic applications of geology, they are sufficiently 

 well known if not always appreciated. Of these some striking 

 illustrations are given by Professor Eamsay in his introductory 

 lecture at the Government School of Mines in 1851. 



Geological Society of London. 



I.— November 17, 1880.— Eobert Etheridge, Esq., F.E.S., Pre- 

 sident, in the Chair. 



The President called attention to the portrait of Dr. William 

 Smith, presented to the Society by his grand-nephew, Mr. W. Smith, 

 of Cheltenham, which was then suspended behind the chair, and 

 expressed his great satisfaction at this most interesting picture 

 being in possession of the Society. The portrait was painted by M. 

 Eorau in 1837. A hearty vote of thanks was passed for the same. 



The following communications were read '• — 



1. " On Abnormal Geological Deposits in the Bristol District." 

 By Charles Moore, Esq., F.G.S. 



The author remarked that the Erome district shows numerous 

 unconformable Secondary deposits and "vein-fissures " resting upon 

 or passing down through the Cai'boniferous Limestone, as described 

 in his former paper (Quai't. Journ. Geol. Soc. vol. xxiii. p. 449). 

 He gave some further particulars as to these deposits, and especially 

 described the occurrence of Post-Pliocene, Liassic, and Eha^tic 

 deposits in the ilf/cro/es^es-quarry near Shejj ton-Mallet. Here the 

 lower part of a fissure is filled with a brown marl, containing 

 crystals of carbonate of lime, and numerous remains of Arvicolce, 

 Erogs, Birds, and Eishes. The jaws of Arvicola were very abundant. 



