300 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Aug. 



NEW MEMBERS. 



Messrs. James Ewan, Wm. Muir, and J. A. Harte were elected 

 ordinary members. 



PROCEEDINGS. 



Dr. Hunt read an abstract of a paper entitled " Contributions 

 to the Chemistry of Natural Waters." Dr. Hunt also read an 

 abstract of a paper on " The Extraction of Copper from its Ores 

 in the Humid Way, by Thomas Macfarlane." 



ANNUAL MEETING. 



The annual meeting of the Society was held at its rooms on 

 the evening of May 18th, the President, Principal Dawson, in 

 the chair. Mr. Whiteaves, the Recording Secretary, read the 

 minutes of the last annual meeting ; after which the usual annual 

 address by the President was delivered, as follows : — 



THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 



Gentlemen : — In the midst of the many exciting occurrences 

 of the past year, we have reason for thankfulness and mutual 

 congratulation that we have been enabled to pursue in peace 

 our unobtrusive work, and that we have to record the past 

 as one of the most successful years of this Society. More than 

 twenty original papers on various departments of Natural History 

 have been contributed, the greater part of which have been pub- 

 lished in our Journal. Our course of Somerville Lectures and 

 our Annual Conversazione have been eminently successful. Large 

 additions have been made to our Museum, and much progress has 

 been made in its arrangement. An Entomological club has been 

 established in connection with the Society, and arrangements have 

 been made for retaining for another term of two years the services 

 of our efficient scientific curator, Mr. Whiteaves. 



In Geology many important communications have been received. 

 Among these I may particularly mention, in the first place, several 

 papers by Dr. Hunt on Canadian lithology, on the silicification 

 of fossils, on mineral waters and on the economical uses of peat. 

 While all of these are of great value, I may direct particular 

 attention to the very remarkable facts stated in the paper on 

 mineral waters, in relation to the saline springs so abundant in 

 this country, when regarded as affording evidence of the com- 

 position of that primeval ocean in which our Silurian beds were 



