^0 Professor Forbes's Address to the British Association, 



for the future, — they merely receive and consider the commu- 

 nications which the zeal of individual members places in their 

 way. Such was proposed to be the character of the Body this 

 day assembled, — an imitation of the foreign meetings having 

 been suggested by some individuals engaged in scientific pur- 

 suits, amongst whom Sir David Brewster was conspicuous ; but 

 the original idea, and the much more signal merit of bringing that 

 idea to bear, of establishing a permanent society, of which 

 these annual reunions should simply be the meetings, but which, 

 by methods and by influence peculiarly its own, should, during 

 the intervals of these public assemblies (whilst to the eye of 

 the world apparently torpid and inactive), be giving an im- 

 pulse to every part of the scientific system, maturing scientific 

 enterprize, and directing the labours requisite for discovery; — 

 the clear perception of the practicability of all this, and the 

 discovery and suggestion of methods for its fulfilment, were due 

 to one individual, and to one alone ; and I shall be borne out 

 by all those who have closely watched the progress of this So- 

 ciety from its birth to the present hour, when I say, that not 

 only for the idea generally, and the modes of carrying it into 

 effect, but for the actual construction of the machinery in its 

 whole details, we are indebted to the almost single-handed ex- 

 ertions of Mr William Vernon Harcourt. 



If we now turn from the professions to the acts of the Asso- 

 ciation, we shall find gratifying proof that these sanguine anti- 

 cipations were not chimerical ; and that this primary machinery, 

 not destined itself to do the work desired, but to construct the 

 tools requisite for its performance, was wanting neither in effi- 

 ciency nor in permanence. The first and most signal proof 

 which we can cite, is the production of those Reports on the 

 Progress "of Science, which appeared to the founder of the As- 

 sociation one of the most important objects of such an institu- 

 tion, and one which, beyond all dispute, no existing society 

 could have attempted. To require of persons whose time was 

 in all cases more or less valuable, such a devotion of it as was 

 required for a systematic and precise detail of the recent pro- 

 gress of the sciences which they respectively cultivated, was to 

 make a demand, the boldness of which cannot perhaps weU be 



