Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-08-19

| PROF. w ]. M'GEE. college course. But by
| care and training he became unusually robust,
| and by study of books and nature he gained
| without aid thorough and liberal education.
For several years he spent part of his time in
business pursuits, the remainder being utilized
| in pedestrian trips through Iowa. His first
! acquaintance with scientific men at the
meeting of the American Association for the
| Advancement of Science at St Louis in 1875.
! when Prof. Simon Newcomb (afterward his
J father-in-law) was retiring president Here he
read papers before the section Of geology COW
ering the results of his journeys in Iowa which
, attracted the attention OF biologists TO him.
! Continued work and papers presented at later
meetings of the association resulted in his ap-
! pointment as assistant geclogist on the United
States geological survey i'll the summer OF 1882
] he following year spent in Utah, Nevada
and California since when his office work has
all been done in Washington. Here his pro-
motion has been rapid, his present position
being that of chief of the Potomac division OF
geology His great work on the geology Of
Iowa is now in the hands of the government
printers. His most recent work is on the At
lantic and gulf slopes. Mr.. McGee is editor OF
the bulletins Of the Geological Society OF Amer
lea and also Of the National Geographic Maya
zine.
PRESIDENT sTEvESsoN's ADDRESS.
At the afternoon session the address of Presi-
dent Stevenson was on 1.-The Relations of the
Chemung and Catskill on the Eastern Side of
the Appalachian Basin"
The speaker prefaced his address with some
historical notes respecting early studies of
these groups especially referring to the sur
veys of Virginia, Pennsylvania and New York,
which were conducted during the years 1887 to
1S41.
He traced the groups along the eastern out
crop from Tennessee into New York, across
southern and western Pennsylvania and east
ward through northern Pennsylvania again into
New York, using the work of Prot. White and
Messrs. CARL and Ashburne in Pennsylvania
and of Prof. Stevenson i'll Virginia ard Penn
sylvania. incidentally referring to the work of
Profs. Hall and Williams in New York. In this
way the continuity of the section shown
and the inslgniticance of the variations was in
sisted upon strongly.
An area in southeastern New York and north
eastern Pennsylvania in which the Chemung
group is almost without trace of animal or
vegetable life through the greater part of the
thickness described. The absence of life
was thought to be due not to fresh water. but
to turbldity of the water in shallow basin
near the land. The facts that the horizons of
fish remains are much lower in the column than
had been supposed, and that the plant remains
come i'll like manner from the home group
were thought TO be OF especial interest and i'm
portance.
The conclusions to which the speaker was led
were:
l. That the series, from the beginning of the
Portage to the end of the Catskill form but one
period, the Chemung, which should be divided
into three epochs-the Portage, the Chemung
and the Catskill.
= That the disappearance of animal and
vegetable life on SO great part of this area
toward the close of the period was due simply
to gradual extension of conditions existing,
perhaps, as early as the Hamilton period in
southeastern New York.
B. That the deposits were not made in a
closed sea, but that the influx of great rivers
with their load of debris made conditions in
the shallow basin such that animal life could
not exist.
f. That in the present state Of our knowl-
edge We are not justified in including the Che
mung period in the carboniferous age.