Page:Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Vol 60.djvu/566

 and Westleton Beds," on the "Relation of the Głacial Period to the Antiquity of Man," on the "Pre-glacial Drifts of the South of England," and on the "Age of the Valley of the Darent," may, perhaps, be described as the more important.

It was while living at Oxford that he produced, in 1886 and 1887, his great work in two volumes on "Geology, Chemical and Physical, Stratigraphical and Palaontological." In this work he not only brought forward many arguments against carrying the doctrine of uniformity too far in attempting to read the history of the earth, but at the same time he showed some signs of reverting to theories involving more of cataclysmic action than most modern geologists are willing to allow. As a whole, however, his book is a monument of patient and conscientious work, and is likely long to retain the high position that it holds at present in geological literature. As already stated, Mr. Prestwich was elected a Fellow of the Geological Society so long ago as 1833. From 1856 onwards he for mauy years served the Society as Treasurer, becoming President for two years, from 1870 to 1872. Already in 1849 the Wollaston Medal had been awarded him for his researches at Coalbrookdale and in the London Basin.

In 1853 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, and at intervals served upon its Council, during seven years in the aggregate. In 1870-1871 he was a Vice-President of the Society. One of the Royal Medals was awarded to him in 1865 for his contributions to geological science.

In France the name of Prestwich was almost as well known as in England. He was one of the oldest members of the French Geological Society, and when it was assembled at Boulogne, in 1880, he was appointed President of the meeting. In 1885 he was elected a Corresponding Member of the Institut (Académio des Sciences) He was also a Foreign Menber of the Accademia dei Lincei, at Rome, of the Geological Institute of Vienna, and of various academies in Belgium, Switzerland, and the United States of America. When the International Geological Congress met at London in 1888, the esteem with which he was regarded by geologists of all nationalities was shown by his unanimous election as President of the Congress.

He retired from the Geological Chair at Oxford in 1888, to the great regret of his brother professors, and of his numerous friends in that University, which conferred upon him in the same year, as a tribute of esteem, the honorary degree of D.C.L. After his retire- ment he resided for the most part at his delightfnl country house, Darent Hulme, Shoreham, Kent, which he built, in accordance with his own tastes some twenty-seven years ago, and every room and wall of which brought to mind some subjeot of geological interest, either in material or decoration. There he actively continued his scientific