Down to earth: One hundred and fifty years of the British geological survey by H.E. Wilson, Scottish Academic Press, Edinburgh & London, 1985. No. of pages: 189. Price: £9.95 (paperback only)
✍ Scribed by W. A. Read
- Book ID
- 102223461
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1987
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 98 KB
- Volume
- 22
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0072-1050
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Believe it or not, this is a book about the British Geological Survey that is actually fun to read! The Geological Survey has, like other typically 'British' organizations such as the BBC, the British Council and the Royal Academy, the rather undeserved reputation among outsiders of being somewhat stuffy, aloof and inward looking, and this book, which is anything but stuffy, will, I hope, help to dispel this stereotyped image. The two previously published books on the history of the Survey by former Directors Flett, in 1935, and Bailey, in 1952, tend to be bland and, frankly, rather boring, but the present author clearly believes that history is about people and the book describes the clash of strong and colourful personalities.
It is undoubtably best at recording the organization's slow rise to its apogee, in terms of scientific reputation and staff numbers, in the late 60s and 70s. The Survey's subsequent rapid decline during the 1980s, when NERC HQ, D En, etc., came to exert an undue influence on the Survey's Scientific programme, is hinted at, rather than described in detail. We must hope that this may be remedied in a future second edition which can draw on the numerous articles and letters in the national and scientific press over the last few years, as well as on the author's own extensive knowledge of the personalities and events.
Mr. Wilson has produced some most interesting new information, revealing, for example, several well concealed skeletons in the Survey's cupboard. The most spectacular of these is the revelation that, at least in the opinion of his own staff who were in a good position to know, the eminent Director General, Sir Archibald Geikie, systematically embezzled the surveyors' field allowances. Their views are admirably summarized in a poem by an anonymous Junior Assistant (p. 120), which is remarkably explicit and uninhibited. The careful preservation of this poem in the unofficial archives of the Survey's Edinburgh office suggests that other geologists shared the poet's views and that Geikie was a widely hated man. Mr. Wilson himself provides succinct thumbnail sketches of other Directors, such as De la Beche ('a thorough jobber'), 'Black John' Flett ('ran the Survey like an autocrat') and Bailey ('in the great tradition of English eccentrics'), as well as many smaller fry.
Lest the potential reader should get the impression that this book consists largely of amusing anecdotes and Victorian scandals, I must stress that it contains many interesting and hitherto unpublished facts as, for example in the chapters on the Drawing Office ('From Stone-Age to Microchip'), the Continental Shelf units ('On the Shelf: geology beneath the waves') and the Computer Unit ('The Numbers Game: computing and computers'). It also includes a brief account of the Overseas Geological Surveys which were merged with the home Survey in 1965 ('The marriage was certainly not based on mutual trust').
Each chapter is headed by an amusing sketch by a talented cartoonist, Roger Geary, which admirably suits the style of the following text. My own personal favourite is the sketch of four hard-faced Victorian gentlemen that heads Chapter IV, 'The Mandarins: those set in authority over us.' The other illustrations include a set of evocative old photographs. They are clear and admirably complement the text.
Having listed its merits it is only fair to mention the book's two principal shortcomings. The first is the lack of an index, which makes it difficult to use the book for quick reference. The second is the price of f9.75 for a fairly slim paperback, when you can still buy fat, hardback B.G.S. memoirs that were published in the 1970s for less than f3. Despite this, I rate the book as a 'must' for anyone who is interested in either the history of Geology or the Geological Survey. If you cannot afford it yourself you should recommend it to your local, or departmental library.
W . A . READ