part 1] PROCEEDINGS OE THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. iii 



is, therefore, difficult to date the birth of the moon later than 

 1000 million years ago. There seems to be no objection to the 

 postulate that the Earth had a cool solid crust at the time of 

 the catastrophe, if that would explain geological observations ; the 

 Pacific Ocean may be the depression which was left, and may 

 have received the waters which formerly covered most of the Earth. 

 The dissipation of energy by the tides occurs chiefly in the 

 land-locked shallow seas, G. I. Taylor having shown that the 

 Irish Sea alone accounts for 1/50 of the whole amount. The 

 brake on the Earth's rotation is thus a surface-brake ; and the 

 hypothesis suggests itself that there may be a slip of the outer 

 crust over the interior at the ' zone of weakness '. If the slip 

 is irregular, this would help to explain certain astronomical 

 •observations of irregularities in the longitudes of the moon, sun, 

 and planets. It might even be the cause of the motion of the 

 magnetic poles. The brake, being applied irregularly over the 

 surface, Avould also tend to crumple the crust. The postulated 

 looseness of the crust might also permit the North Pole to move 

 about over the surface ; but exceedingly long periods of time 

 would be required, since there is no systematic tendency of the 

 ■•crust to move in latitude. 



Dr. J. W. Evans, Prof. W. J. Sollas, Mr. P. D. Oldham, 

 Dr. G. T. Prior, and the President having made certain obser- 

 vations and queries, to which the Lecturer replied, a cordial vote of 

 thanks was unanimously accorded to him by the Fellows present. 



December 6th, 1922. 



Prof. A. C. Seward, Sc.D., F.P.S., President, and afterwards 

 Mr. E. D. Oldham, F.R.S., Vice-President, in the Chair. 



John Rickman Bourchier, Furze Reeds, Midhurst (Sussex) ; 

 Charles Henry James Clayton, M.B.E., M.Inst.C.E., 53 Carlton 

 Avenue, Dulwich, S.E. 21 ; William James Cousins, 2 Dorlcote 

 Road, Wandsworth, S.W. 18 ; Leslie Reginald Cox, B.A., Assistant 

 in the Department of Geology, British Museum (Natural History), 

 95 Mattison Road, Harringay, N. 4 ; Reginald Cordon Doyle, 

 F.C.S., The Larches, 28 New'lands Park, S.E. 26 ; David Gibby, 

 B.Sc., Glyn Llewelbyn, Clynderwen (Pembrokeshire) ; Harry Cecil 

 Haworth, B.Sc, 82 Leamington Road, Blackburn (Lancashire) ; 

 G-eorge Arthur Hughes, 47 Thornhill Square, N. 1; Herbert Stanley 

 Hunter, Thornton House, Hartburn, near Morpeth (Northumber- 

 land) ; Agnes Irene McDonald, M.Sc, Demonstrator in Geology 

 .at Bedford College, 103 Belgrave Road, S.W. 1 ; William Edward 

 Frank Macmillan, 42 Onslow Square, S.W. 7 ; Sidney Leonard 

 Mainprize, Wydale, St. John's Avenue, Bridlington (Yorkshire) ; 

 Leslie Hamilton Ower, Government Geologist, Belize (British 



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