LIXNEAX SOCIETY OF LONDOX. 19 



PRESIDENTIAL ADDEESS. 



EeLLOWS of the LiNIfEAN SOCIETY, 



At the conclusion of my third year of office I thank you 

 again for the opportunity you have given me of serving our 

 Society, and I ask you to join me in thanking my fellow-oflScers 

 who have taken their fulJ share of the responsibihty and the 

 work. 



To the regret of us all, our honoui-ed Zoological Secretary, the 

 Eev. T. R. E. Stebbiug, E.E.S., whose reputation as an original 

 worker in Carcinology gave distinction to the office, intimated his 

 intention of retiring during the present Session. We did what 

 seemed possible to induce our colleague to remain in office at least 

 until this anniversary meeting, but the claims of much unfinished 

 work elsewhere weighed too heavily, and tlie Council after due 

 consideration felt bound to respect Mr. Stebbing's undoubted 

 wish, and to release him from duty. I am sure that I only 

 express the opinion of all tlie Eellows when I say that Mr. 

 Stebbing carries with him on retiring our most cordial thanks for 

 his devotion to our affairs during the last four Sessions, our 

 appreciation of his work, both on Council and at the meetings, 

 and our earnest hope that he may long have health and strength 

 to continue those admirable researches which have ad<led so much 

 to our knowledge of systematic Invertebrate Zoology. Our 

 personal loss, in this instance, is, it may be confidently expected, 

 a gain to Science at large. 



The Society is fortunate in having found Prof. Arthur Dendy 

 able and willing to accept office and take up at short notice the 

 duties relinquished by Mr. Stebbing ; and, at our special meeting 

 on March 7th, on the nomination of the Council, he was duly elected 

 Zoological Secretary. As Prof. Dendy was already a Councillor 

 his nomination and election to office created no vacancy, and 

 consequently Mr. Stebbing was enabled to retain for the remainder 

 of the Sessiou his seat upon our Council. 



We have enjoyed a normal, active and useful Session. Anyone 

 attending the meetings with some regularity, or looking over the 

 series of fortnightly abstract reports which are circulated to 

 the Eellows and afterwards printed in the ' Proceedings,' wiU 

 agree that we have received and discussed a number of very 

 varied and interesting communications, ranging over most depart- 

 ments of Botany and Zoolcgy. Amongst noteworthy papers may 

 be mentioned Dr. Herbert Eov^ ler's series on Biscayan Plankton, 

 Mr. Stanley Gardiner's on the Results of the first Percy-Sladen 

 Trust Expedition to the Indian Ocean, and Mr. Crossland's on the 

 Sudanese Eed Sea Fauna ; an important work by our late Fellow, 

 Mr. C. B. Clarke, on Malayan Acanthaceae ; the paper on the 

 Fauna and Flora of Abyssinia and West Africa, by Prof. Poultou ; 



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