Geology and Mineralogy. 389 



II. Geology and Mineralogy. 



1. International Geological Congress at London. — The trien- 

 nial meeting of the Geological Congress commenced its sessions 

 in London on the 17th of September, and was opened by the. 

 Inaugural Address of Professor J. Prestwich, President of the 

 Congress, reviewing- the results of former meetings, criticising 

 some of the points in the proposed scheme of nomenclature, and 

 stating the subjects open for discussion. The meeting passed 

 without formal votes on the various questions at issue. The sub- 

 stitution of the term Ordovician for Lower Silurian was con- 

 sidered, and appeared to have comparatively little support. It 

 was opposed strongly by Dr. Archibald Geikie, Director of the 

 Geological Survey of Great Britain. Several papers were pre- 

 sented on the nature and origin of crystalline rocks, and abstracts 

 on the papers in full are published in Nature of Sept. 20 and 27, 

 and Oct. 4. The authors of the papers are Professor Ph. Lory, 

 T. Sterry Hunt (holding firmly still, September, 1888, to the 

 Taconian and all his other subdivisions), Professor J. Lehman, 

 Professor K. A. Lossen, Dr. Albert Heim, A. Michel-Levy, and 

 M. Karpinskr. The last four of these geologists brought forward 

 cases of fossiliferous crystalline schists of different periods. These 

 and other papers with a full account of the sessions will appear 

 in the Report of the Congress. 



Philadelphia was selected as the next place of meeting, and a. 

 committee was appointed to make the necessary arrangements, 

 consisting of Messrs. Hall, Dana, Newberry, Frazer, Gilbert, 

 Hunt, Marsh and Walcott. 



From Nature of Oct. 4 we learn that according to the report of 

 Dr. W. Hauchecorne on the map of Europe, four or five sheets of 

 Central Europe will be ready for publication during the next two 

 years and be published without waiting for the rest. The whole 

 number of sheets is to be forty-nine. The scale is 1 : 1,500,000. 



American geologists were well represented at the meeting. 

 One of them observes that the Congress, as regards acquaintance- 

 making, opportunity for comparing views and the modes of 

 studying problems in use in different countries, and the discussion 

 of the many problems of international interest was a great 

 success. But " there seemed to be a very general agreement that 

 votes can settle very few of the questions." The American Com- 

 mittee, above mentioned, will have a session at New Haven in 

 November, during the meeting at that place (commencing Nov. 

 13) of the IT. S. National Academy. 



2. Theoretische Geologie von Dr. E. Reyek, a. o. Prof, der 

 Geol. an der Univ. Wien. 868 pp. 8vo, with 700 cuts and three 

 maps. Stuttgart, 1888 (E. Koch).— The work of Dr. Reyer is 

 based on the recent as well as older results of investigations, and 

 not less those of America than of Europe ; and largely upon 

 his own investigations. The subjects discussed include volcanic 

 action and its various results ; intrusive sources, conditions, and 



