6 HISTORY OF THE SOCIETY. 



fellow-worker at hand; none with whom to communicate on subjects 

 enlightening and elevating, such as these. 



"■ Nor is the state of matters much more hopeful with the 

 dweller in or near a large manufacturing town, the inhabitants of 

 which are too much engrossed with the pursuit of material wealth 

 to cultivate the God-like portion of their being, the mind ! To 

 isolated dwellers in such a community, possessed of higher tastes 

 and feelings, our Society may be made a priceless boon ; one of 

 the means of retaining faith in God, and their fellow-men ; which 

 might otherwise be trodden under foot of mammon, or die out 

 from sheer inanition. 



" Then I think that our Society may be the means of linking 

 together in happy and profitable union, other like bodies having 

 kindred aims. That we might become the cement whereby other 

 local leaders of scientific thought in their various districts — say 

 the President, Secretary, and one or two others of the most active 

 members, being also members with us — might keep up, and through 

 the pleasant intercourse thus created, augment a common interest 

 in each other's well-being. 



" Nor, though mentioned here last, is it intended in any sense 

 to forget, or treat lighdy, the claims on our regard of the fairer, 

 the brighter sex. I have had some experience of Microscopic 

 Soire'es — my first dating more than thirty years ago, the life-time 

 of a generation — and have ever taken note that the most delighted 

 observers, the most eager questioners and listeners, on such 

 occasions, were the ladies ! It is a trite saying, that man has 

 to work out his conclusions, whilst woman sees them intuitively. 

 I plead for the admission to our Society of Ladies ; on equal 

 terms, with equal rights and privileges. We cannot but be 

 gainers by the sharpness of their insight into structure ; the 

 neatness, tidiness, ingenuity in the modes of mounting, which 

 would soon follow after a little practice by them. In cases where 

 the experiment has been fairly tried it has proved a complete 

 success. 



"With regard now to the future work of our Society. I 

 consider one great advantage possessed by our members, to a 

 greater degree than in any other Society with whose workings I 

 am acquainted, consists in the very large amount of ge?ieral know- 

 ledge to be gained by careful study of the various slides which 

 come before us, instead of restricting themselves too closely to one 

 subject. If due care be taken to profit by this, plenty of openings 

 for special work in many different directions cannot fail to present 

 themselves. Mosses have scarcely been brought before us at all ; 

 Fern-structures in only a desultory way ; Seeds and Seed-structures, 

 Algae and Desmids ; Marine organisms of various kinds ; the 



