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PRESENTATION 



ROYAL AWARDS 



TO ELI^HA KENT KANE, M.D. ; TO HEINRICH BARTH, PH.D., 

 AND TO CORPORAL CHURCH, of the Ilmjal Sajipers and Mi7iers, 



His Excellency G. M. Dallas, Minister of the United States of 

 America, Raving consented to receive the Gold Medal awarded to 

 Dr. Kane, the President addressed him as follows : — 



" Sir, — The Founder's Gold Medal, the highest honour this Society- 

 has in its power to bestow, has been awarded to Dr. Kane, of the 

 United States of America, for his distinguished services and important 

 discoveries in the Polar regions, while in charge of the expedition 

 fitted out in America to search for Sir John Franklin ; and for his 

 valuable Memoir and Charts, commimicated through the Admiralty. 



" In the absence of Dr. Kane himself, I could desire no greater 

 privilege than that of confiding the award, Dr. Kane has so justly 

 deserved, to the hands of the distinguished representative of the 

 nation to which he belongs ; in order that the feeling of this Society, 

 and I may say of the country at large, may go forth in its fullest 

 extent to the land which enrols the name of Dr. Kane among her 

 citizens. Sir, I cannot discharge this duty without passing a remark 

 on the peculiarity of the circumstances attending this occasion. 



" It seldom happens that nations so distantly situated, sponta- 

 neously unite in such acts of humanity as those which have charac- 

 terized the late search for Sir J. Franklin. More rarely still do 

 we find the sympathies of individuals so enlisted in the fate of 

 foreigners, as to manifest themselves in acts of philanthropy of such 

 a truly liberal and substantial character as have here occurred ; and 

 this act of the United States, together with the names of Grinnell 

 and Peabody, will long be remembered in this country, even after 

 the spirit of Arctic enterprise Fhall have passed away. But, Sir, if 

 the feelings of nations have been deeply enlisted in this search, how 

 much more so must have been the feelings of individuals, who enjoyed 

 the friendship of the object of it ? Sir, there are persons now present 

 who were early associated with our lamented countryman, who 

 shared with him his first perilous encounter with that icy element 

 which was afterwaids to become his tomb, and who enjoyed his 

 friendship through life. 



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