464 International Geological Congress. 



union into one system (for which the name is yet to be deter- 

 mined), of the different beds, corresponding to the Cambrian 

 and Silurian of the British Isles. The French, Portuguese and 

 Roumanian committees propose the name of Silurian System. 

 Before voting on the proposition, the Congress will have first to 

 pronounce upon the names to be given to the three groups, and 

 then on their union into one or two systems. The Hungarian 

 Committee propose a Cambrian and a Silurian system ; the latter 

 comprising the groups 5 and 6 united. The Belgian Commit- 

 tee would have proposed an analogous grouping, but preferred 

 to conform to the decision taken by a large majority at Zurich. 

 The . French Committee does not propose any name for the 

 three groups. The Roumanian Committee gives them inad- 

 missible names (these should be each in one word), "lower, 

 middle and upper.' The Belgian Committee proposes the 

 names Cambrian, Ordovician and Silurian. The Portuguese 

 substitute 'Bohemian' for the last term. We have already 

 said the English Committee has not been called to decide upon 

 the questions of the report which have been submitted to it." 



Since the receipt of the reports of the national committees, 

 the questions to be decided have been complicated. M. Jules 

 Marco u, in an important work published by the American 

 Academy of Science and Arts, and entitled "The Taconic 

 System and its position in stratigraphic geology," has vindicated 

 the priority of the term Taconic of which the Cambrian alone 

 (or Primordial fauna) would be the equivalent. We think the 

 question is demonstrated. In such a case the term Cambrian 

 would be employed to replace the Ordovician, the name Silu- 

 rian would come back by right to group 6. If we be not in 

 error this solution would avoid many difficulties. We propose 

 to the Congress to determine first, the names that the groups 

 4, 5 and 6 should bear. It will have to decide afterward 

 whether they constitute one or two systems, and finally the 

 name or names to be employed. 



Professor A. Greikie proposed that the Congress postpone the 

 subject of subdividing the Cambrian and Silurian until the 

 meeting in England ; on the ground that the Silurian question 

 was mainly an English question. (Loud murmurs). Professor 

 Hughes agreed with Professor Geikie as to the propriety of 

 postponing the discussion of these questions, and said that 

 Professor Hall had also expressed his approval of this course. 



The chairman, Dr. von Dechen, put the question to divide 

 the Silurian, but leave the names till the meeting in England. 

 M. Capellini regretted such action, if it would postpone the 

 completion of the European map. M. Hauchecorne said it 

 would not, as the map could be completed without waiting for 

 the determination of the names. 



