208 



was merely personal, to explain the reasons for his shortcoming, and to 

 thank the members most cordially for their kind indulgence. 



With regard to the Treasurer's report, it would be observed that the balance 

 at the end of the year (£77 7s. lOd.) was a little less than the balance 

 at the beginning (£100 18s. 10d.), but that was partly due to loss 

 incurred by the failure of Mr. D. Bogue, and partly to the increased amount 

 spent on printing the Journal; but as the Journal was so well filled with 

 valuable information, he was quite sure that they would not regret that it had 

 been so expended. On the other hand, there was an increase in the number 

 of members. The losses had been very much more than sustained by the 

 junction of new members, and therefore he thought they might say that the 

 finances of the Society were in a very sound and satisfactory condition. 



The President then announced that the following gentlemen had been 

 elected as officers and members of Committee for the ensuing year : — 



PRESIDENT— Mr. A. D. Michael, F.L.S., F.R.M.S. 

 Vice-Presidents— Dr. \V. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., &c, &c. ; Dr. M. 



C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., &c. ; Dr. John Matthews, F.K.M.S. ; 



Prof. Chas. Stewart, M.R.C.S., F.L.S. 

 Hon. Treasurer— Mr. F. W. Gay, F.R.M.S. 

 Hon. Secretary— Mr. G. C. Karop, M.R.C.S., &c. 

 Hon. Secretary for Foreign Correspondence and Editor of 



Journal— Mr. Henry F. Hailes. 

 Hon. Reporter— Mr. R. T. Lewis, F.R.M.S. 

 Hon. Librarian — Mr. Alpheus Smith. 

 Hon. Curator — Mr. Chas. Emery. 

 Four Members to Fill Vacancies on the Committee— Mr. F. W. 



Hembry, F.R.M.S. ; Mr. W. W. Reeves, F.R.M.S. ; Mr. E. 



M. Nelson ; Mr. J. W. Groves, F.R.M.S. 



The President then delivered his annual address. 



On the close of the address the President left the room, and the chair was 

 occupied by Dr. M. C. Cooke, who said that when he was not expected, 

 perhaps, to have been called upon to occupy the position he did, a resolution 

 was put into his hand which he thought he could not do better than move 

 from the chair. He was sure he should have the cordial support of the 

 Club in this resolution ; it was in effect a vote of thanks to the President 

 who had just left the room, both for his services during the past year and for 

 his remarks that evening. He did not know that he could do better than 

 propose it at once. There were two or three observations which he had 

 intended to have made, — hoping that the President would have been with 

 them a few minutes longer, — and to have noticed some of the views he (the 

 President) particularised. One as to whether bacteria and bacilli were 

 altered in culture as being an important subject for investigation. All 

 those who had spent thirty or forty years in biological study would come to 

 the conclusion that there was a far greater variation in biological objects 

 than was allowed to take place by young beginners, who are too apt to 

 imagine that every variation must constitute a new species. All artificial 

 cultivation should, he thought, always be watched very carefully, as it 



