The Scottish Naturalist. 345 



There is complete agreement among all interested in the welfare 

 of societies such as form the East ot Scotland Union, that the 

 great objects for which the societies exist are to afford all practi- 

 cable encouragement and facilities for the acquirement of know- 

 ledge to each of their members, and to advance the sum of human 

 knowledge as a whole, in so far as that can be accomplished by 

 original investigations, carried on in connection with the society, 

 and facilitated by co-operation of the members. Only by 

 such co-operation is it possible to gain the full benefits of 

 work in societies, as contrasted with work done by isolated 

 individuals. 



It is cause for regret that this beneficial effect of societies is only 

 an ideal in most provincial societies. The work to which a society 

 devotes itself may be literary, or may be in great measure confined 

 to some physical science ; or it may be antiquarian \ or more 

 generally it relates to the sciences of geology, zoology, and botany, 

 often associated with archaeology. It is seldom that any discovery 

 of a very far-reaching kind is first made known in any local society 

 or published in its transactions ; since such discoveries tend to be 

 brought forward in large societies, or in journals important enough 

 to secure for them a wide and general circulation. But while 

 startling discoveries are not to be looked for in the publications 

 of provincial societies, good work of permanent value may be, 

 and often is, done in them in adding to human knowledge by the 

 careful and minute investigation of the district in which each 

 society is situated, whatever be the science or sciences that find 

 most favour among its members. 



It is well that the progress of human knowledge in all depart- 

 ments should be made known very widely, and that those persons 

 in each society best fitted to do so by their special studies should 

 call attention to, and should explain to their fellow-members, the 

 nature and scope of the great discoveries made by the great 

 leaders of progress. But if the work of societies is confined to 

 acquiring a knowledge of the results attained by others, without an 

 effort to advance the sum of human knowledge by thoir own 

 labours, or to repay In some measure the obligations undei which 

 they lie, the effect will be of necessity evil to the highest aims of 

 the societies ; and the original interest in their welfare will rapidly 

 diminish, and will die out wholly in no long time. Societies, if 

 healthy, will manifest their vitality by the value of the original 



