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XVI. The Presidential Address ; Delivered by Kaphael 

 Meldola, F.R.A.S., F.C.S., at the Annual Meeting, 

 January 28th, 1882. 



Ladies and Gentlemen, 



The grateful task of congratulating you upon the 

 completion of another annual cycle once more devolves upon 

 me. Whilst fully sensible of the honour which you have 

 conferred upon me by electing me for the third year to the 

 Presidential Chan-, I cannot but rejoice to think that our 

 Society has now assumed such proportions that I may con- 

 fidently look forward to seeing, at no very distant period, my 

 present position filled by some gentleman having more direct 

 claim to your consideration both as a local resident and a 

 working naturalist. The duty of acting for another year the 

 part of a nurse towards this Club, whose birth and growth I 

 have watched with such interest, will, however, give me even 

 more gratification than heretofore, since our ranks are filling 

 with that class of members whose support we most value, 

 and our publications show that we have commenced work in 

 earnest. 



During the past year our Society has had several resign- 

 ations, and two deaths ; but, notwithstanding this, we now 

 number some 314 members as compared with 224 in our 

 last year's list. The deaths we have to deplore are those of 

 Mr. Walter P. Weston and Sir Antonio Brady. 



Mr. Weston was well known as a student of our native 

 Lepidoptera and Coleoptera, the Tortrices being his special 

 objects of study. He also added considerably by his labours 

 to our knowledge of the insects inhabiting oak-galls, whilst 

 his activity as a general entomologist is borne witness to by 

 his numerous contributions to the pages of the ' Entomologist.' 

 Our late member died of consumption at a comparatively 

 early age, and although I had not the pleasure of knowing 



