PROCEEDINGS OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. f 



fans, both primary and secondary, was Of), 1 in 1 G, and that of the 

 reach only -04, 1 in 25, while at tlie head of the reach, where it 

 was cutting back into the face above, tiicre was a gradient of '08, 

 1 in 12. 



The general tendency of the exi)eriments supports not only the 

 specitic conclusions of the former paper as to the normal form and 

 behaviour of a river which has attained a state of equilibrium, but 

 to a greater degree the fundamental assumption that a river will 

 adapt its cliannel to such a slope and form as will enable it to just 

 transport a solid burden cast upon it. 



Discussion. 



Dr. Blanford found it difficult to follow the paper without 

 seeing the experiments. He himself had somewhat misunderstood 

 the Author's previous paper. He called attention to the fact 

 that the state of equilibrium in streams never lasts long. The 

 paper was rather, therefore, of interest to engineers than to geo- 

 logists ; but the Author had done good service to science by making 

 a series of experiments to test his geological conclusions. 



Mr. BiNNiE bad, as an engineer, conducted experiments of a 

 somew^hat similar nature, and found the problem practically in- 

 soluble, owing to the varying conditions ; and he considered caution 

 should be exercised in arguing from so limited a series of expe- 

 riments. 



Mr. ToPLEY called attention to the experiments made by a Com- 

 mittee of the British Association with reference to the flow of water 

 into estuaries. 



The President was not satisfied, from the brief abstract he had 

 heard, that the few experiments described furnished sufficient data 

 for the conclusions. 



2. " On the Bocks of North Devon." By Henry Hicks, M.D., 

 F.R.S., Sec.G.S.* 



[Abstract.] 



During a recent visit to North Devon the Author obtained evi- 

 dence which has led him to believe that far too little importance 

 has hitherto been assigned, to the results of movements in the 

 Earth's crust as affecting the succession of the rocks in that area. 

 The supposed continuous upward succession from the rocks on the 

 shore of the Bristol Channel to those in the neighbourhood of 

 Barnstaple, including, according to some authors, no less than ten 

 groups, and classed into three divisions under the names Lower, 

 Middle, and Upper Devonian, is, the Author believes, an erroneous 

 interpretation. The beds, he says, have been greatly plicated and 

 faulted, and consequently several times repeated, and instead of 



* Withdrawn by the Author with the permission of the Council. 



