284 The Field Naturalises Quarterly November 



sentences : — " We have all realised that in this country, more 

 than in any other that is called civilised, there prevails 

 among all classes an extraordinary ignorance of the first 

 principles of biological science. . . . We must remember 

 that the science of Natural History is as a closed book to 

 most of those who, after a public school and university 

 education, have attained to a position of trust and respon- 

 sibility in the government of our country and our cities. 

 . . . It is of fundamental importance for the zoologists of 

 this country to consider and report upon the necessity for 

 the extension and improvement of the teaching of Natural 

 History in our schools and colleges." 



Our readers know that for the past year we have been 

 urging precisely this duty upon our secretaries of field 

 clubs, namely, the teaching of the first principles of biological 

 science, and it is with great pleasure that we find the 

 President of the Zoology Section at the British Association 

 also insisting upon its importance. We trust that the 

 section will make it their business to have a full discussion 

 of this matter on the first opportunity. If more attention 

 were given to questions of this sort, there would be much 

 additional interest taken in the proceedings by the members 

 of the various scientific societies. Closely bound up with 

 this is the need emphasised by Professor Hickson for the 

 provision of the necessary machinery for the full discussion 

 of the matters which affect the welfare of the science as a 

 whole. As he said, there is no society which all serious 

 students and teachers of zoology feel is the one society 

 which it is their duty and in their own interests to join. It 

 is easy to see, and we quite agree with him, that his own 

 opinion is that Section D of the Association ought to be 

 that society. Why is it not so at present ? 



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In some remarks which followed Professor Hickson's 

 paper, the Rev. T. Stebbings (whose articles in Knowledge 

 we have frequently referred to) drew attention to a matter 

 which was commented on in these columns in our last 

 issue. He emphasised the need of some ready means of 

 reference to all the papers and articles upon scientific 



