7 



lime, sand, and gravel, for purposes of construction, is a matter of import- 

 ance. There are many manufacturers who require clay, flints, and china 

 earths for ceramic wares ; others sand for glass ; and so almost throughout 

 the circle of our industry. There is more particularly that vast branch of 

 our national wealth which is dependent on our mining and metallurgy, and 

 the persons connected with which have an intimate interest in encouraging 

 our pursuits. 



There is not a peer in the country who, though he may not have time 

 to join in our work, will not feel that he must have some share in pro- 

 moting it, and that his name must be inscribed in our list. There is 

 hardly a man of science who will not be desirous to acknowledge that we 

 are assisting his labours. 



The heads of enquiry embraced in the yearly reports will vary accord- 

 ing to the resources of the district, but they will embrace many features of 

 great interest to theoretical and economical science. They will include: — 



Additions to the surveys of maps, resulting from more minute classifi- 

 cation consequent on local researches, or the application of general princi- 

 ples of geological science. 



The announcement of new minerals, and more particularly economical 

 substances which may become available. 



The publication of the discoveries of fossils, thereby completing our 

 paleontological records. 



An account of all operations which have laid bare the surface, or pene- 

 trated beneath it, as mines, quarries, wells, pits, railway and road cuttings, 

 tunnels, and landslips, and these will afford many matters of record. 



Observations on the wells, springs, and subterranean strata of water. 



Thermal observations on the surface and in mine shafts, and of superfi- 

 cial and subterranean waters. 



Electro-magnetic observations on mineral lodes, an important branch of 

 study, for which there have as yet been limited opportunities. 



Records of earthquakes in particular districts, as those carried on by 

 that zealous labourer in the field of science, Mr. Drummond, of Comrie, 

 in Perthshire. 



All phenomena affecting the surface should be recorded. Thus near 

 the sea the abrasion of the shores, a matter of deep interest on our eastern 

 coast, will be watched, and new cases of deposition examined. The like 

 operations of rivers should be studied. Then there are evidences of recent 

 abrasion on some of our mountains, which are worthy of notice. So, too, 

 further evidence of boulders, glacier scratches, and ancient abrasions will 

 be contributed, of water-worn surfaces, footsteps, and other local indica- 

 tions. The effect of agricultural operations on the surface should also be 

 studied, as the removal of stagnant water by drainage, the interference with 

 water courses, the mixture of soils and alteration of colour, the removal or 

 extension of woods, all matters of interest in the investigation of the phe- 

 nomena of the geological periods, and which will contribute to meteorology. 



The result of special enquiries into the properties of the building-stones 

 of the district, or of researches for metals, minerals, fuel, manures, raw 

 materials or building substances found elsewhere in analogous formations. 



As the system becomes organised, these reports will be published in the 

 local journals, and contribute valuable information, while important facts 

 selected therefrom, and included in our yearly report, and printed in our 

 Transactions, will make the scientific world acquainted with the progress 

 of our knowledge. 



The Chairman confirmed Mr. Clarke's observations on the geological 

 advantages of these islands, and referred to Yorkshire and the Isle of Wight. 

 He dwelt on the practical advantages of geological knowledge, and alluded 



