104 TliG President's Address. 



the weather gives some prospect of our being able to find 

 the earth dry enough for sifting. 



In attempting to unravel the mystery that surrounds 

 these venerable relics of human workmanship, and in 

 endeavouring to discover the true origin of the camp at 

 Ambresbury Banks, and of '' Cowper's Camp," we may 

 perhaps be accused of trenching upon the province of our 

 old-established colleagues the Essex Archseological Society, 

 but as this is far from our intention, it will not be here out 

 of place if I venture to define what to me appears to be our 

 position with respect to this Society, and to archaeology in 

 general. In point of fact the studies of the Society 

 mentioned commence where ours leave off — it is more 

 especially prehistoric archseology with which I think we 

 should concern ourselves as a Natural History Club ; and 

 although we shall always welcome historic archaeological 

 contributions from our members — especially when relating 

 to the biographies, &c., of Essex naturalists — I am of opinion 

 that our Treasurer's purse should not be bled in order to 

 publish such papers iii extenso, but that such materials 

 when communicated to us should be handed over by the 

 Council to our brother Society to be published or dealt 

 with as they shall think fit. Let not these remarks in any 

 way deter our members skilled in archa3ology from giving 

 us the results of their labours ; their contributions will add 

 greatly to the interest of our meetings, and their value to 

 the science will be the rather augmented by their being 

 ultimately referred to a Society which has made these 

 subjects its proper study. 



The only other Eield Meeting upon which I feel called 

 to make any comment was the last of the session, held on 

 October 2nd, under the leadership of Dr. M. C. Cooke, 

 Mr.Worthington Smith, and Mr. James English. x\ humour- 

 ous account of this " Fungus foray " appeared in the Gar- 

 dener's Chronicle of October 9th, from the pen of one of 

 our conductors, and the full list of the most noteworthv 

 species collected appears in our "Proceedings." The meteo- 

 rological authorities treated us badly on that occasion ; but 

 notwithstanding tlieir "aqueous humours" we mustered 



