210 The American Geologist. April, i890 
present at the meeting of the Congress in London or from taking any 
part in its subsequent proceedings. In reply to your inquiries, there- 
fore, I can only say that I shall acquiesce in the demands of the major- 
ity of my colleagues. 
T. Sterry Hunt. I think it well to postpone the Congress to 1892. 
Persifor Frazer. If the world's fair is to be held in 1892, it would 
seem unquestionably better to postpone the next session of the Con- 
gress till then, but if (as seems not improbable) the world's fair itself 
is to be adjourned until 1893, the date fixed by the Congress itself 
should stand. I am in favor of leaving the decision to the committee 
on organization. 
G. H. Williams. I am in favor of postponing the meeting till 1892 if 
the international exhibition is held in that year. I do not, however, 
think that the meeting should be put oft" later than 1892. 
It will be seen that a strong preponderance of opinion is in 
favor t)f postponing- the session for one year. Few of the 
voters have expressed any opinion as to the postponement for 
two years, because probably this possible contingency did not 
suggest itself, but all those who have taken it into account are 
opposed to a two years' postponement. In view "of these facts 
it is well to consider that the strong probability is that the 
meeting will take place as first designed, in September, 1891. 
The time seems very short to prepare for this eventuality. 
When the Congress at Berlin was over, the British committee 
acting through iNIr. Topley immediately took steps to inform 
scientific bodies throughout the Avorld of the place and 
date of the next one, and to invite them to become subscrib- 
ers to this Congress, holding out the inducement that in this 
manner the full proceedings and published documents would 
be sent to such subscribers at the nominal price of their sub- 
scription (10 shillings). Over a score of such notices in differ- 
ent forms were printed in the scientific journals of America 
and in this way there was a larger subscribing membership 
from the United States than from any other part of the world 
(except perhaps England). It was intended that these sub- 
scriptions should raise an important part of the expenses and 
lighten the burden of those who contributed money outright 
for defraying the necessary expenses of the Congress. 
The London session was not as expensive as the Philadel- 
phia session will be for many reasons, one of the strongest of 
which is, that in America we have made it our habit to do 
things of this kind on a scale of liberality which may in part 
atone for our newness as a nation. What Chicago is to the 
eastern cities of this country, that is the United States to the 
