342 SOCIETY OF PHYSICS AND NATURAL HISTORY, OF GENEVA. 



and M. Gueiiee, of Chateaudun. The assiduity with which these gentle- 

 men have associated themselves with us in our labors, the desire which 

 they have manifested to continue with us in relations in which the interest 

 of the society has been so largely increased, has induced usto confer upon 

 them the title of honorary members; and your president before resign- 

 ing his place to his successor had the pleasure of expressing to them 

 the faithful interpretation of our sentiments. 



To the names of the savants whom I have just mentioned, I must add 

 those of several gentlemen who have sojourned with us only a short 

 time, particularly M. Bigot and M. Duperrey, who have only appeared 

 at our meetings at brief intervals. Lastly, we have welcomed in our 

 city our emeritus member, M. Dumas, perpetual secretary of the Acad- 

 emy of Sciences, whom we delight to claim as one of ourselves ; for 

 none of you can forget that it was at Geneva that M. Dumas published 

 his lirst works, and that he stands to-day among the elders of our soci- 

 ety of physics. 



It is very seldom, gentlemen, that a year passes without our being 

 called upon to mourn the departure of one of our colleagues. To-day 

 we have to lament the death of a highly esteemed savant, who was 

 admitted into our ranks only a few short months ago. Dr. Augustus 

 AValler was born, in 1816, at Elverton, near Ferusham, in the county of 

 Kent, England. lie pursued the study of medicine in France, and 

 received in 1840 a diploma of doctor of medicine from the faculty of 

 Paris. He then returned to England and established himself at Ken- 

 sington, where he practiced medicine for several years. But the ordi- 

 nary occupation of the i)hysician was not sufficient to satisfy his inves- 

 tigating spirit, and he always found time to devote himself to scientific 

 researches in the domain of anatomy and physiology. His principal 

 investigations were directed to the nervous system, which did not fail 

 to lead to important discoveries, and some well-known experiments 

 which he made in London upon the degeneracy which the nerves and 

 the nervous center undergo, obtained ior him the title of member of 

 the Koyal Society, and the grand prize of ])hysiology from tlie Academy 

 of Sciences at Paris. Not finding in London all the facilities necessary 

 to his researches, he resolved to change his residence, and did not hesi- 

 tate to sacrifice to his studies a i)ractice which had become extensive. 

 He removed with his family to Bonn, where be had full leisure to con- 

 tinue his i)hysiological and microscopical investigations upon the ner- 

 vous system. 



The researches which he made in physiology, either alone or in col- 

 laboration with Professor Budge, entitled him to more honorable dis- 

 tinction on the part of the Academy of Sciences at Paris. He obtained 

 for the second tinu^ the great prize of ])hysiology on account of his dis- 

 coveries relative to the functions of the great sympathetic nerve, and to 

 the influence of the spinal marrow upon the pupil. From Bonn, Waller 

 repaired to Paris, and after having laborejl lor several years in the 



