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BOOK NOTICES. 

 The Geology of England and Wales : with Notes on the Physical 

 Features of the Country. By Horace B. Woodward, F.G.S. 

 2nd ed., 8vo, 670 pages. London : Geo. Philip & Son, 1887. 



The handsome volume before us does not merely add one more to 

 the nmiierous manuals of geology which so frequently appear : it has a 

 definite line of its own, being, as its title denotes, a geological guide 

 to England and Wales. As such it is very complete, and comprises 

 an enormous amount of material, including the most recent researches 

 of local geologists. There is, however, a store of more general in- 

 formation, both interspersed with the local details and in the intro- 

 ductory and concluding chapters. A special feature is the insertion 

 of brief historical and personal notes explaining the origin and appli- 

 cation of our stratigraphical nomenclature, and summarising the con- 

 flicting views of different authorities on such debated questions as 

 the classification of the Cambrian and Silurian, the Devonian, and 

 the New Red Sandstone. 



In all these points the present work shows considerable additions 

 as compared with the first edition ; so that, despite the omission of 

 the promised account of the geology of the principal railway lines, 

 which many amateurs will regret, the new edition attains goodly 

 proportions. 



After a section treating of introductory matters, the author begins 

 with the Archaean system, which he includes under the Palaeozoic 

 group, and gives a succinct account of the pre-Cambrian rocks 

 described by Dr. Hicks at St. David's (with Dr. Geikie's counter- 

 statements), by Prof. Hughes in Carnarvonshire, by Dr. Callaway in 

 Shropshire, etc. Next comes the Cambrian, the term being used in 

 what we may call ' a strictly Sedgwickian sense,' i.e., to include all 

 the strata from the base of the Harlech to the top of the Bala series. 

 The development of these formations is described for the districts of 

 North Wales, Shropshire, Pembrokeshire, and the Lake District. 

 The Silurian system receives hke treatment. The old Red Sand- 

 stone is divided in what is now generally admitted to be the most 

 natural manner, the lower portion being linked with the Silurian, the 

 upper with the Carboniferous. The Devonians of North Devon, 

 which have received much attention from local workers, are described 

 in detail : and the rocks of Torquay, Plymouth, and Cornwall are 

 also treated. The author is of opinion that the Devonian rocks 

 represent the Upper and Lower Old Red Sandstone and the gap 

 between them. 



The Carboniferous system is fully described under its various local 

 types, and the coal-fields, including the culm-measures of Devonshire, 



Naturalist, 



