106 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Vol. vii. 



He claimed that the facts collected up to the presectdate in each 

 of these fields of inquiry, and especially late discoveries at Men- 

 tone, all tend to throw doubts upon the great antiquity which 

 some had assigned to the human family. 



ADDRESS TO H. E. THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL. 



On the occasion of His Excellency's first visit to Montreal, io 

 October, 1872, the President and Rec. Secretary were deputed 

 to call on His Excellency to request him to become the Patron 

 of the Society, and to honour the Society with a visit. His 

 Excellency, through his Private Secretary, kindly consented to 

 become Patron of the Society, but regretted that in consequence 

 of numerous engagements he would be unable to visit the Mu- 

 seum on this occasion, but hoped to do so at some future time. 



At a subsequent visit to the city, the same deputation waited 

 on His Excellency to invite him to inspect the Society's collec- 

 tion. His Excellency was again compelled to postpone his visit^ 

 but kindly consented to receive an address of welcome from the 

 ojfficers and members. 



SESSION 18 73-74. 



ANNUAL MEETING. 



The Annual Meeting was held on Monday evening, May 19th, 

 1873, the Rev. A. De Sola, LL.D., in the chair. 



The minutes of the last Annual Meeting having been read, the 

 address of the Acting President, Principal Dawson, LL.D., F.R.S., 

 &c., was read by the Recording Secretary, as follows : 



ADDRESS OF THE ACTING PRESIDENT. 



Gentlemen, — Our present meeting closes the fortieth year of 

 the existence of this Society, and it becomes us to consider to 

 what extent the hopes of its founders, expressed in the motto, 

 " Tandem fit surcuJus arho?-, " have been realized. A tree that 

 can boast of forty annual rings of growth, in the soil and climate 

 of Canada, should have attained to a goodly stature, should 

 extend a wide and grateful shade, and should have borne some 

 good fruit. Looking back upon the origin of the Society, we 

 must confess that our growth has been slow, and has not kept 

 pace with that of the great business community of Montreal, nor 

 with that of similar institutions in the larger cities of the United 



