ABSTRACT OF PROCEEDINGS. lv. 
3. ““Some Geological Notes on the Country behind Jervis 
Bay,’ by H. I. JENSEN, psec. 
4, *“ Vocabulary of the Ngarrugu Tribe, N.S. Wales,’’ by 
R. H. MATHEWS, L.S. 
5. ‘The Sedimentary Rocks of the Lower Shoalhaven 
River,’’ by Onas. F. LASERON. (Communicated by 
Re) Pe BAKER, EES.) 
Some remarks were made by Mr. R. T. BAKER. 
6. “The Discontinuity of Potential at the Surface of 
Glowing Carbon,” by J. A. PoLLock, A.B. B. RANCLAUD, 
and EK. P. NORMAN. 
Abstract of lecture on *“‘ John Dalton and One Hundred 
Years of the Atomic Theory.” (Illustrated by diagrams and 
models) by F. B. GUTHRIE, F.1.C., F.C.S., delivered 19th 
November, 1908. The lecturer after shortly reviewing 
Dalton’s life, discussed the position of the Atomic Theory 
in the development of the science. The history of chemistry 
since Dalton, has been the development, extension and 
modification of the theory. Previous conceptions of the 
atomic structure of the Greek were then discussed, notably 
those which we owe to the Greeks and Lucretius, and it 
was shown that though it is customary to regard Dalton’s 
theory as a development of the Greek, Dalton’s conception 
of the atoms differed fundamentally from theirs. As first 
enunciated the law explained satisfactorily certain phe- 
nomena then for the first time noticed, but was not free 
from objection owing to confusion arising between the con- 
ceptions of atoms and of compound atoms or molecules, and 
owing also to an arbitrary assumption on Dalton’s part as to 
the proportions in which the elements combine, as well as 
to the difficulty in correctly determining theatomic weights. 
These difficulties were got over largely by the acceptance 
of the important law known as A vogadro’s law and the dis- 
covery of relationships between the atomic weights and the 
