100
years ago
Evening
meetings:
March
20th. [1906] - Held at Lecture Hall, Central Library,
Croydon. Subject: " Three-Colour Photography."
By Mr. Sanger Shepherd
April
24th. - Resolution passed to alter Rule VIII to admit
teachers as members at a subscription of 5s.
Mr. J. E. Clark, B.Sc., gave an account of his visit to
South Africa with the British Association, and Mr. H.T.
Crosfield, B.A., exhibited a series of lantern-slides of
photographs taken on the same visit. [James Edmund
CLARK and H T CROSFIELD were Society members elected in
1897 and 1905 respectively.]
May
15th. - Mr. W. F. Stanley (President), F.R.S., F.G.S.,
read a paper "On the Causes of Earthquakes and
Volcanoes."
After alluding to the late calamity at San Francisco, of
which Mr. Stanley showed a record of the consequent
earth-movement, obtained by Professor J. Milne at Shide,
Isle of Wight, he argued that earthquakes and volcanoes
were due to pressure at the poles caused by the weight of
snow and ice, which, acting upon the molten material
beneath the superficial crust of the earth, produced
expansion along the lines of least resistance and rupture
of the surface, thus causing earthquakes, and that
volcanoes were simply the vents through which the
expanded molten material escaped. [The San Francisco
earthquake of April 18, 1906 has been estimated as
registering 7.9 on the Richter scale. Nowadays the
movement of plates explains seismic and volcanic
activity. However, an association of ice ages with a
decrease in volcanic activity has been attributed to the
stabilising effect of ice masses.]
Excursions:
July
7th, 1906. - Excursion to Park Downs, Chipstead Village
and Church. Conducted by Dr. H. Franklin Parsons, F.G.S.
A half-day excursion was made, under the leadership of
Dr. Parsons, from Chipstead Station to Park Downs,
Chipstead Village and Church, returning by the Brighton
Road to Stoat's Nest. The plants observed en route are
given in the Report of the Botanical Section.
Chipstead Church, like most other ancient village
churches in this neighbourhood, stands on a mound, and
has a large yew tree in the churchyard; but, unlike
others, it is cruciform in shape, and has a central tower
instead of a shingle-covered spire. ... [The recent
Presidential address of Dr Jane McLauchlin, concerning
churchyard yew trees, can be found in the current issue
of the Society's Proceedings.]
Extracted
from the Proceedings of the Croydon Natural
History and Scientific Society, 6(4),
xcvii-xcviii (1907).
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