PHYSICS AND NATURAL HISTORY, OF GENEVA. 263 



a session of the society, was elected an honorary member. The society 

 has chosen as president, for the year commencing to-day, Professor de 

 Caudolle, and has re-elected as treasurer, for three years dating from the 

 month of January, M. Philippe Plantamour. Finally, it has acquired 

 two new free associate members, MM. Edouard Des Gouttes and Henri 

 Hentsch. 



Tlie second part of volume xxi of our memoirs appeared at the end 

 of 1871}; it contained, besides the report of the president, an article 

 upon the Lepidoptera of the Museum of Geneva, by M. Guenee, whom 

 the society elected last year as honorary member ; the fourth series of 

 a work by M. Duby on new, or not well known, cryptogams; some 

 observations upon a primordial group of plants {appendiciilaires) of the 

 Strait of Messina, by M. Hermann Fol ; and, lastly, an important me- 

 moir upon the effects of lightning upon trees and ligneous plants, and 

 the employment of them as conductors or lightning-rods, by M. Daniel 

 Colladon. 



Independently of the first part of volume xxiii, which will appear 

 in the course of the year, the society, thanks to the generosity of M. 

 Claparede, sen., and of his daughter, Madame Flournois, has added to 

 its memoirs, as volume xxii, the last work of M. Edouard Claparede, 

 prefaced by a biographical notice of our lamented colleague, by M. 

 Henri de Saussure. This volume, which is already printed, will soon be 

 given to the i)ublic. 



The society is still occupied with investigations in regard to the lake 

 of Geneva, and has received several reports of the commission from 

 M. Alphonse Favre. After allotting a sum of 500 francs from its funds 

 to commence this work, in order to defray the subsequent expense 

 the society has opened a special subscription, which has brought in 

 1,800 francs net. The first soundings undertaken by M. Favre, assisted 

 by M. Henri Hentsch, cost 330 francs 75 centimes, which sum was taken 

 from a donation to the commission of 700 francs — 400 from the Geneva 

 society and 300 from the Vaudois society. In the following account of 

 the labors of the society will be found some of the scientific results 

 obtained. 



I mention, merely to recall the fact, the examination made by the society 

 of the changes proposed by the central committee of the Helvetic Society 

 of NaVaral Science in the existing constitution and title of the society. 

 It has given an opinion unfavorable to their adoption, especially that 

 which relates to a diminution in the number of days of a session, which 

 the committee proposed to reduce to two. The society has always ad- 

 mitted that the local committee could, when desirable, make this reduc- 

 tion. 



SUMMAS.Y OF SCIENTIFIC LABORS. 



1. Physical science. — The mathematical sciences which, without a strict 

 regard to the laws of classification, I enter under the head of physical 

 science, have been well represented in our sessions. 



