PRESENTATION TO MR. WILLIAM COLE. I2g 



in similar directions by Mr. Cole and his brothers and sisters, I feel in the diffi- 

 culty which was wickedly expressed in the old Latin proverb — Pereant male qui 

 ante nos nostra dixissent. I heartily echo all that has been said on the subject. 



Epping Forest is a very old memory of mine. My earliest ideas of any- 

 thing scientific— it is long over fifty years ago— were connected with my 

 being taught botany by my father in Epping Forest. I think I can now show the 

 exact place where I first found sundew. I cannot find it there now, because, 

 unfortunately, that particular pond is dried up. But that is one of my earliest 

 remembrances, and it has given me a very strong belief in the value of natural 

 history to the young in eliciting their sense of wonder and enquiry. 



In conclusion, I wish to express my entire concurrence with this most 

 important movement and the extreme pleasure it has given me to have any part 

 in it (Applause). 



Mr. T. Vincent Holmes, F.G.S., said : I have noticed that some local 

 scientific societies which, for a time, did very good work have lasted only 

 sixteen or eighteen years. They lasted only so long as their originators were 

 working in full vigour with them ; but, when they disappeared, their places were 

 not taken by others having the same interest in the society, and the society 

 gradually vanished. We are doubly fortunate in that Mr. Cole and his brothers 

 and sisters, who have served us from the beginning, are still with us at the end 

 of a quarter-of-a-century of existence. I trust we may continue to have their 

 services for another quarter of a century. 



Professor Boulger said : Unlike some of those who have addressed you, my 

 acquaintance with the forest began simultaneously with my acquaintance with 

 Mr. Cole. It so happened that, when I was most associated with the work of 

 the Field Club, we had a somewhat stormy period, during which Mr. Cole and I 

 fought side by side in a very sharp contest which followed the rescue of Epping 

 Forest. 



I am glad this is not a meeting of the Club, but that it is a special gathering 

 for the personal congratulation of Mr. Cole and his brothers and sisters. A great 

 many of us first made our acquaintance with Mr. Cole through the Club, and 

 that acquaintance has ripened into friendship. One may have official relations 

 with many men in connection with many societies, but they do not necessarilv 

 result in personal friendship. With Mr. Cole, however, I think all those who 

 have been actively associated with him in the work of the Club have come to 

 look upon him as a personal friend. We all congratulate him upon the result of 

 his long work, and we hope that that work may long continue (Applause). 



Mr. P. Gellatly, J. P., Verderer of Epping Forest, said : I come here 

 to-night simply as a neighbour of our good friend and not to represent anybody ; 

 but, having been called upon unexpectedly to say something as a Verderer oi 

 Epping Forest, I should like to associate Mr. Cole with our work. 



Since Epping Forest was dedicated by the Queen for the benefit of the people, 

 the Epping Forest Committee (of whom the Verderers form a part) have taken 

 the deepest interest in carrying out the duties devolving upon them and have 

 improved the glorious open space committed to their charge. 



When they had made the important restorations to Queen's Elizabeth Lodge, 

 which they were bound to preserve as an historic building, and had restored it to 

 something like its ancient character, Mr. Cole saw his opportunity of utilizing 

 the spacious rooms as a Natural History Museum especially connected with the 



