﻿ANNIVERSARY 
  ADDRESS 
  OF 
  THE 
  PRESIDENT. 
  65 
  

  

  in 
  his 
  ' 
  Traite 
  de 
  Geologic' 
  It 
  would, 
  however, 
  have 
  required 
  a 
  

   much 
  more 
  general 
  agreement 
  than 
  exists 
  amongst 
  European 
  geolo- 
  

   gists 
  to 
  have 
  justified 
  so 
  marked 
  an 
  innovation 
  in 
  the 
  map 
  of 
  

   Europe. 
  The 
  same 
  remark 
  applies 
  to 
  the 
  acceptance 
  of 
  the 
  Per- 
  

   mian 
  as 
  a 
  distinct 
  subdivision, 
  although 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  only 
  inferior 
  in 
  

   importance 
  to 
  the 
  Trias, 
  but 
  is 
  palaeontologically 
  an 
  integral 
  part 
  of 
  

   the 
  Carboniferous. 
  To 
  reduce 
  such 
  periods 
  as 
  Cretaceous, 
  Jurassic, 
  

   Silurian, 
  and 
  Cambrian 
  into 
  a 
  form 
  in 
  which 
  they 
  would 
  represent, 
  

   even 
  approximately, 
  divisions 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  duration 
  as 
  Pleistocene, 
  

   Pliocene, 
  and 
  Permian, 
  would 
  involve 
  a 
  complete 
  rearrangement 
  

   of 
  the 
  whole 
  geological 
  succession. 
  Before 
  an 
  attempt 
  is 
  made 
  

   at 
  such 
  a 
  rearrangement 
  it 
  is 
  desirable 
  that 
  a 
  larger 
  area 
  than 
  

   Western 
  Europe 
  should 
  be 
  selected 
  for 
  the 
  field 
  of 
  experiment. 
  

  

  When, 
  however, 
  we 
  pass 
  from 
  the 
  systems 
  of 
  the 
  map 
  to 
  their 
  

   subdivisions, 
  it 
  is 
  difficult 
  to 
  avoid 
  feeling 
  some 
  degree 
  of 
  doubt 
  as 
  to 
  

   whether 
  a 
  more 
  equable 
  arrangement 
  might 
  not 
  have 
  been 
  adopted, 
  

   even 
  for 
  European 
  rocks. 
  The 
  Trias 
  is 
  divided 
  into 
  three 
  series, 
  

   the 
  far 
  more 
  important 
  Cretaceous 
  system 
  into 
  only 
  two, 
  and 
  the 
  

   Eocene 
  and 
  Cambrian 
  are 
  undivided. 
  It 
  is 
  impossible 
  to 
  avoid 
  

   regretting 
  that 
  the 
  relative 
  local 
  importance 
  of 
  particular 
  sub- 
  

   divisions 
  has 
  led 
  to 
  the 
  raising 
  of 
  a 
  comparatively 
  unimportant 
  stage 
  

   like 
  the 
  Muschelkalk 
  to 
  a 
  rank 
  equal 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  Neocomian 
  and 
  

   Gault 
  combined, 
  or 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  Lias, 
  together 
  with 
  the 
  Rtatic 
  

   in 
  many 
  localities, 
  or 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  whole 
  Cambrian. 
  The 
  fact, 
  

   of 
  course, 
  is 
  that 
  in 
  this 
  case 
  deference 
  has 
  been 
  paid 
  to 
  a 
  time- 
  

   honoured 
  classification 
  peculiar 
  to 
  part 
  of 
  Germany 
  and 
  a 
  small 
  area 
  

   in 
  Prance. 
  This 
  is 
  an 
  illustration 
  of 
  the 
  evil 
  produced 
  by 
  merely 
  

   local 
  classifications 
  and 
  by 
  the 
  misleading 
  name 
  under 
  which 
  the 
  

   Triassic 
  system 
  is 
  known, 
  a 
  name 
  derived 
  from 
  the 
  local 
  subdivision 
  

   of 
  the 
  system 
  into 
  three 
  well-marked 
  stages, 
  two 
  of 
  which 
  are, 
  in 
  the 
  

   main, 
  subaerial, 
  fluviatile, 
  or 
  lacustrine, 
  and 
  the 
  third 
  alone 
  marine. 
  

   The 
  latter, 
  moreover, 
  contained 
  a 
  peculiar 
  local 
  fauna 
  which 
  pro- 
  

   bably 
  inhabited 
  an 
  inland 
  sea, 
  and 
  differed 
  materially 
  from 
  the 
  true 
  

   marine 
  Triassic 
  fauna 
  which 
  has 
  now 
  been 
  traced 
  from 
  the 
  Alps 
  and 
  

   Spitzbergen 
  to 
  Chili 
  and 
  New 
  Zealand. 
  In 
  short 
  the 
  so-called 
  typical 
  

   Trias 
  is 
  altogether 
  an 
  exceptional 
  and 
  abnormal 
  system, 
  and 
  useless 
  

   for 
  purposes 
  of 
  comparison. 
  

  

  The 
  coloration 
  of 
  the 
  sedimentary 
  rocks 
  in 
  the 
  map 
  of 
  Europe 
  

   has 
  the 
  very 
  common 
  defect 
  that 
  the 
  colours 
  are 
  in 
  large 
  measure 
  

   too 
  dark 
  and 
  too 
  opaque 
  ; 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  understood 
  that 
  this 
  will 
  be 
  

   altered 
  to 
  some 
  extent. 
  The 
  system 
  of 
  colours 
  does 
  not 
  give 
  satis- 
  

  

  