He rejected aqueous origins and Von Buch's elevation-crater theory – which held that craters were caused by the buckling of the crust below them. Scrope and Lyell must have been frustrated with the majority of the early Geological Society of London who kept their big ideas close to the vest so as not to cause backlash. The two natural philosophers above could not exist in such an environment and found their own ways to fight this stagnant situation. Lyell and Scrope's boldness helped to initiate its modern advance and internal development. Because their friendship featured a "freedom of intercourse" it was undoubtedly of great value to the pair in fighting conventional thought and its errors. Lyell wrote glowing reviews of several of Scrope's papers during the twenties and thirties, lending some of his considerable clout. Upon the release of Lyell's "Principles of Geology", on parts of which he had deep correspondence with Scrope, George was "committed the congenial task of applying and driving home [their arguments]." To this end, the first and second volumes of "Principles of Geology" were introduced by "appreciative and discriminative notices in the Quarterly [Review]" which were written by his friend Scrope. The third edition of the series was also favourably reviewed by Mr. Scrope. Around the year 1821, Scrope was made a magistrate and was affected with the hardships of the agricultural laborer. "Thenceforth his interest in economic and political affairs, tho [sic] it did not exclude his interest in geology, was unabated." Scrope turned his considerable mind and talents of persuasion to the problems he saw. An unusually articulate magistrate, Scrope communicated his views on current problems in letters to magistrate colleagues and in many pamphlets. Over the course of his life, George Poulett Scrope wrote more than seventy politically and economically charged pamphlets, earning him a common nickname of "Pamphlet Scrope." Scrope perhaps felt that his efficacy was limited if he remained only a local politician. In 1832, Scrope ran for the Parliamentary seat of Stroud, which he did not succeed in obtaining. However, one of the successful candidates, David Ricardo, shortly accepted the Chiltern Hundreds for reasons of family health, and Scrope was returned for the seat unopposed. He remained active in politics until 1867. In the House of Commons, Mr. Scrope was not very vocal.