1 80 The Irish Naturalist. 



J. W. Carr, of Nottingham, expressed his entire agreement with Mr. 

 Forbes' views, and his own willingness to resign the types under 

 his care to the British Museum. But as curators were not the owners 

 of the specimens, he feared the realisation of the plan to be im- 

 possible, as the local authorities would not consent to give up their 

 most cherished specimens. Mr. PlaTnauer, of York, hoped that in 

 time, authorities might be educated up to such self-sacrifice, but con- 

 tended that many advantages accrued from the present system. The 

 specialist, in a visit to a local museum, sees many interesting specimens 

 which he might otherwise miss, while his experience is of great value 

 to the local curator. Mr. F. A. Bather, of the British Museum, thought 

 that type specimens should be preserved in the localities where found ; 

 he objected to have to go to America to see types from Germany, or to 

 St. Petersburg to inspect types from the British Isles. 



Mr. F. A. Bather, m.a., read some " Notes on Travel," describing 

 museums he had seen in South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, and 

 pointing out features in their arrangement worth imitating or avoiding. 



Professor T. Johnson, D.Sc, gave a paper on "The Functions of a 

 Botanical Museum," advocating that collections should be formed to 

 assist students in the study of various groups of plants, and that special 

 attention, particularly in Ireland, required to be paid to agriculture, 

 horticulture, and other practical applications of botany. 



A short business meeting followed, at which Edinburgh was fixed as 

 the place of meeting for 1895, and the Lord Provost of that city was 

 elected President. 



In the afternoon Trinity College was visited. The members w T ere met 

 by the Librarian and Professors, and conducted over the Library, and the 

 geological, zoological, and anatomical museums. The ancient illumin- 

 ated books and other treasures of the Library much interested the 

 visitors, who also paid special attention to the anthropometric laboratory. 

 At the close of so well-occupied a meeting, however, it was no wonder 

 that some were observed to turn aside to watch the cricket match in the 

 College Park 1 



Royal Zoological Society. 



Recent donations comprise a Long-eared Owl from A. R. C. Newburgh, 

 Esq. ; a St. Kilda Sheep from Dr. A. Finegan ; and a Wood-Pigeon from 

 W. W. Despard, Esq. 



10,580 persons visited the gardens in June. 



Belfast Naturalists' Field Club. 



June 30th. — Half-da)' excursion to Scrabo Hill. A party numbering 

 over eighty assembled at Linen Hall at 2.30, and drove via Dundonald to 

 Scrabo Hill, where the quarries of Triassic sandstone intersected with 

 dykes and the overlying deposit of boulder clay were studied. Tea 

 was subsequently provided at the Ulster Hotel, and the party reached 

 Belfast at a late hour. 



Belfast and Dublin Naturalists' Field Clubs. 



June 16th. — An interesting joint excursion was held on this date, when 

 a part)' of forty-five Dublin members proceeded northward by the 9.0 

 train from Amiens Street, which was stopped at Lay town, to allow the 

 members to alight, by the courtesy of the superintendent of the line. A 

 party of some fifty members of the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club and 



