proceedings: biological society 659 



the United States and the present-day concentration of scientific 

 workers in Washington was just beginning. The first meeting of the 

 Society was held in the home of an entomologist, C. V. RilEy, and the 

 first paper presented was by an ichthyologist, T. H. Bean. A number 

 of incidents of early days were related, among which was one of the 

 attendance on May 8, 1897, of Theodore Roosevelt, then Assistant 

 Secretary of the Navy. Mr. Roosevelt came to discuss a recent com- 

 munication by Dr. Merriam on the classification of mammals. In 

 closing, Dr. Howard remarked that with the increased number of special- 

 ists other bodies had .been organized as ofi"shoots from the parent 

 Biological Society and that more of these were coming in the future. 

 All were united, however, in desiring long life and prosperity to the 

 original organization. 



The second paper, by Dr. W. H. Dall, was entitled Reminiscences. 

 Dr. Dall related that in 1880, in company with T. H. Bean, he was 

 engaged on a survey of the Alaskan coast in the vessel Yukon. He 

 returned to Washington December 31, 1880, and was elected to mem- 

 bership in the Biological Society in January, 1 88 1 . The first paper read 

 at a meeting of the Society was by T. H. Bean on results obtained on 

 this voyage of the Yukon, while the second was a presentation of Ward's 

 Flora of the District of Columbia. Other incidents of great interest 

 regarding the early days of the Society were given and the speaker 

 closed by remarking that in his opinion no other society had contributed 

 more toward the advancement of the study of biology in North America. 



Dr. T. S. Palmer continued the regular program with a discussion of 

 The ''Proceedings.'' The speaker stated that with the current year 

 the Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington will have com- 

 pleted thirty-two volumes that have averaged from one hundred to two 

 hundred pages each. The series now has covered approximately five 

 thousand pages. The first six volumes include addresses made before 

 the Society as well as other matter. The character of the publication 

 was then changed to its present form, a series of brochures comprising 

 short papers and brief notes that deal with new and original contribu- 

 tions in systematic zoology and botany; while one brochure, published 

 at the close of each year, gives a brief synopsis of the regular meetings 

 of the Society. The Proceedings have attained such importance 

 that workers in systematic biology find it essential to have the set avail- 

 able for reference. 



Discussion of these three papers followed, by H. M. Smith, M. B. 

 Waite, W. p. Hay, and David White. 



Alexander Wetmore, Recording Secretary pro tern. 



