254 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Yol. viii. 



the seventh of January, 1 854, he was elected a member of the 

 Canadian Institute of Toronto, and in the same year his first 

 purely palaeontological paper was published in that society's 

 journal. It was entitled " On some genera and species of Cys- 

 tidea from the Trenton Limestone," and was issued in two parts. 



In 1855 a committee was appointed to endeavour to secure a 

 creditable representation of the products and industrial resources 

 of the country at the first Paris Exhibition, and prizes were 

 offered for the best essays on Canada. The first of these prizes 

 was adjudged to John Sheridan Hogan (whose tragic fate in 

 Toronto may be remembered by some of the readers of these 

 pages), the second to the Hon. Alexander Morris, the present 

 Lieutenant-Governor of Manitoba, and the third to J. C.Tache, 

 M.P.P. In accordance with the recommendation of the Judges, 

 the executive committee awarded three extra prizes, of twenty- 

 five pounds each, to the authors of the essays bearing the follow- 

 ing mottoes: " Suam quisque pellem portat " ; " Keddit ubi 

 cererem tellus inarata quotannis " ; and "It is with nations as 

 with nature, she knows no pause in progress and development, 

 and attaches her curse to all inaction." The authors of these 

 essays were declared to be Hector L. Langevin, of Quebec ; E. 

 Billings, of the city of Ottawa ; and W. Hutton, secretary to the 

 Board of Statistics. Quebec. 



The first number of the Canadian Naturalist was issued by 

 Mr. Billings in February, 1856, with a prospectus shewing the 

 objects aimed at in the new venture. A copy was sent to each 

 of the members of Parliament, and one was also forwarded to 

 Sir W. E. Logan, accompanied by a letter, of which the follow- 

 ing is a copy : 



Ottawa, 29th February, 1856. 



Sir Knight, 



I have taken the liberty of sending you the first number of 

 the Canadian Naturalist and Geologist, and hope that it may find 

 favour in the opinion of one who has achieved so much for science in 

 this province. It is scarcely necessary to say to you that a work 

 commenced under the circumstances cannot be without imperfec- 

 tions. I feel satisfied, however, that with practice and perseverance 

 I can improve its appearance. You are aware that during the last 

 few years 1 have been studying geology,* and during last summer I 



* With the view of qualifying himself for a field geologist, he had 

 also at this time mastered the first principles of optics and trigono- 

 metry, as the writer learns from the perusal of other letters to Sir W. 

 Logan. 



