584 GEOPHYSICS: H. S. WASHINGTON Proc. N. A. S. 
then take up seriatim the consideration of certain problems in which the 
other sciences represented by sections of the Union may enter. Because 
of the hmitation of space only a brief enumeration and presentation 
will be made, and no adequate discussion will be undertaken. I am much 
indebted to various members of the Union for some valuable suggestions, 
which will be mentioned in their proper places. 
VOLCANOLOGY 
A word may be said as to the name of the science. The spelling, vol- 
canology, (rather than vulcanology) , has been adopted officially by the 
Executive Committee of the Union, following the report of a sub-committee. 
The decision was arrived at chiefly in accordance with the dictum of the 
Century Dictionary (5. v. vulcanism): "The words volcano and volcanic 
are firmly fixed in English, and the former is in universal and exclusive 
use among those who speak that language. Hence all the derivatives 
should be spelled accordingly." 
It is now well recognized that there are different types of volcanoes, 
distinguished by their form and structure, as well as (generally) by the 
differing kinds of volcanic activity, and that these differences are to a 
large degree dependent on, or at least coincident with, the differing chem- 
ical types of the volcanic material, such as, for instance, whether rhyolitic, 
andesitic, or basaltic. It follows that the activity or form of any one 
volcano, such as Vesuvius, Kilauea, or Stromboli, cannot be taken as 
typical of all volcanoes generally. This important principle does not 
seem to be generally recognized. 
One of the first and most fundamental needs for the proper study of 
volcanoes is the compilation of a complete and fairly detailed catalogue 
of volcanoes (suggested by Wood and the writer). Such a catalogue 
should list all known active, dormant, or recently extinct volcanoes. It 
should give briefly, so far as known or ascertainable, the geographical 
position; the hypsometrical and areal data, including those of the crater; 
the general petrographical characters of the lavas, with the general order 
of succession of the different types; whether active, dormant, or extinct, 
with the geological period of commencement if possible ; the general types 
of volcanic activity; a chronological list of the known eruptions, with 
some indication of the degrees of intensity ; and a bibliography of the chief 
sources of information as to each volcano; with possibly such other data 
as may present themselves. 
The older lists, as those of Daubeny (1848), Landgrebe (1855), Scrope 
(1862), and Fuchs (1865), are far from being complete; while even the 
more recent ones, such as that of Mercalli (1907), though they list many 
volcanoes not known to the earlier volcanologists, are yet themselves 
not complete, nor do they give many of the varied data mentioned above 
as desirable. The compilation of such a catalogue might be entrusted 
to a special committee. 
