90 ANNUAL REPORT. 



collections which we hope to have in the museum in addition to the local series. 

 The Council have pleasure in acknowledging specimens of small collections from 

 Mr. J. E. HartincT, Mr. H. Seton-Karr, ]\ir. Johnson, Mr. Kennard, Mr. 

 Goodchild, Mr. F. C. J. Spurrell, Dr. A. Wilson, Messrs. W. and B. G. Cole, 

 and others. Mrs. Sewell piesented the herbarium of her late husband, our 

 member, \[r. A. S. Sewell, to the Club's museum. Very considerable alterations 

 and additions have been made, but it will be better to defer a description of these 

 until the Curator can report a closer realization of the "idea" of the museum. 

 It is anticipated that most of the public collections will be at least temporaily 

 arranged by the close of 1903. The Curator takes this opportunity of again 

 emphasising the really urgent necessity of systematic collecting, especially of 

 marine and coast forms of life. The assistance he receives from members and 

 others is too sporadic. It is much to be wished that some of our younger 

 members would take up definite groups, and endeavour to collect for the museum 

 good and authentic Essex specimens in such groups. This would confer great 

 benefits both upon themselves and upon the museum, and the assistance they 

 could claim from head-quarters in the determination of and information about 

 specimens in their own collections would compensate them for the slight 

 additional trouble. But above all we need explorations carried out by the Club 

 itself; until we are able to do this our museum will not progress at the rate all 

 well-wishers desire. And at the present time one great need of the museum is 

 extensive cabinet accommodation ; we have at present many thousand specimens 

 awaiting systematic arrangement and cabinet space, and the need will rapidly 

 grow in dxtent and exigence. How to obtain these costly cabinets is a problem 

 that must be faced in the near future. The most notable presents to the library 

 were the Handbook of British Birds from Mr. Harting, Gilberd's De Magnete 

 from Professor Meldola, and the supplemental volume of the same from Professor 

 Silvanus Thompson. From the executors of our late member Mr. Augustus 

 Cunnington, we have received the posthumous privately printed catalogue of his 

 Essex librar}-. 



Epping Forest Museum. — This institution has been a source of considerable 

 anxiety to the Council and the Curator. The re-fitting with new cases, and the 

 restoration of the old ones, is now completed, but the heavy cost of this work has 

 exhausted the funds in hand. It is imperative, in view of the Club's agreement 

 with the Corporation, that the re-arrangement of the Museum should be proceeded 

 vaXh at once. The Club's Epping Forest Museum Committee have this matter in 

 hand, but it is manifest that further subscriptions are necessary. About £150 

 would finish the collections in hand, and furnish several cases of mammals and 

 birds, mounted with natural surroundings, a kind of exhibition which appears to 

 be necessary for the popular appreciation of the Museum. This is all that need be 

 said at present ; it is probable that a public meeting Avill be called in the early 

 sumnier, in order to place the facts of the case and the needs of the institution 

 clearly before the members and the inhabitants of the Forest districts. 



Conference Meeting. — The joint meeting of the three "East 

 Anglian " Societies, proposed at IpsM-ich, fell through mainly by reason of the 

 heavy charge for a steamer. After much correspondence, our Secretary is reluc- 

 tantly compelled to admit that he sees little hope at present of a combined action 

 in the way of publication. Efforts should be concentrated in endeavours to estab- 

 lish an annual or biennial meeting of the Societies for mutual encouragement and 

 discussion. In connection with the Conference of Conesponding Societies at the 



