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ORDINARY MONTHLY MEETING. 



September 24th, 1913. 



Mr. W. S. Dun, President, in the Chair. 



Miss N. Crouch, Sydney, was elected an Ordinary Member of 

 the Society. 



The Donations and Exchanges received since the previous 

 Monthly Meeting (27th August, 1913), amounting to 13 Vols., 

 40 Parts or Nos., 21 Bulletins, 3 Pamphlets, and 1 Map, received 

 from 39 Societies etc., were laid upon the table. 



NOTES AND EXHIBITS. 



Mr. R. J. H. Jenkins showed a flaked, aboriginal stone axe- 

 head, of a rather primitive type, found imbedded in a portion of 

 the root of a Eucalypt, as shown, a little above high water-mark, 

 at Woy Woy, partially overlain by shell-debris. 



Mr. D. G. Stead exhibited a photograph of a large Leopard 

 Seal captured, during August, on a shoal at Pelican Island, in 

 Brisbane Water, opposite the township of Woy Woy. It is 

 believed that at least four of these large pelagic Seals were pre- 

 sent at that time in Brisbane Water, an exceedingly shallow, 

 lake-like expanse of great extent, connecting, through a very 

 narrow entrance, with Broken Bay. Three examples were re- 

 corded as having been seen by the local Inspector of Fisheries, in 

 the main channels on the 6th August, and later on in the day, 

 two were seen at Gosford, which is right at the head of Brisbane 

 Water. During that week, large shoals of apparently terrified 

 fishes were observed on the shallow flats in from 6 to 8 inches of 

 water during every night. It is a most unusual thing for our 

 fishes to school in this manner, especially during the occurrence 

 of westerly winds, as was the case at the time; and it is reason- 

 able to suppose that fear of these savage seals had driven them 

 there. The Seal photographed was tethered to the jetty at Woy 

 Woy for two days, and then liberated — apparently none the worse. 

 Mr. Stead stated that the Leopard Seal appeared to be in numbers 



