Item 109 - Letter from Charles Lyell

3 pp.

Further to his problems with nomenclature [see CL to WW, 27 January 1831], CL gives his thoughts on certain terms: 'I might perhaps call the whole group of those canes the Ca[e]nophorous formation - whereas Cenophorous would approach too near to Cenotaphous - would it not be possible now to talk of Ca[e]nary briefly, as of tertiary...To throw out tertiary would I fear be too great an innovation as yet...I believe tertiary must until abandoned, as it will be by and by, be extended to all the cenaries'. CL is now looking for 'a term for the much abused word 'diluvium'' - 'I propose to adopt Bigsby's [John J. Bigsby] term Protalluvion'.