78 PROCEEDIXGS Of THK 



at the Dainviii Celebration in 1909, and by his election as a 

 I'oreigu Member of this Society (1905) and of the Geological 

 [Society ot" London (1909 ; corresponding member 1899). 



Personally, Zeiller had a great charm of manner, his dignity 

 and conrtesy winning the hearts of all his colleagues, many of 

 whom have the pleasantest recollections of his warm kindness 

 and hospitality. 13y religion he was a devout Catholic. 



[D. H. Scott.] 



June 1st, 1916. 



Sir David Puaix, C.M.G., F.li.S., President, in the Chair. 



The Minutes of the Anniversary Meeting of the 21th May, 

 191(5, were read and contirmed. 



Colonel Masters John Godfery was admitted a Fellow. 



Mr. Thomas William Brown and Dr. WiUiam Thomas Elliott, 

 r.Z.S., were elected Fellows. 



The President announced that he had appointed the following 

 to be Vice-Presidents during the ensuing year: — Mr. Horace 

 AV. MoNCKXON, Prof. E, P. Poulton, Dr. A. E. Shipley, and 

 Dr. Orxo Stapf. 



Mr. Clement Eeid, F.R.S., and Mr. James Groves, F.L.S., 

 gave a demonstration of " Sew types of Fossil Characeae from 

 the Purbeck Beds." In the absence of Mr. lieid, Mr. Groves 

 referred to the cui'iously isolated character of the Characece 

 exhibiting no clear atiiuities with any other group of plants, and 

 to the consequent interest attaching to any light which could be 

 thrown on their past history. After enumerating the earlier 

 formations in which plant-remains conjectured to belong to 

 ancestors of the group had been found, he stated that the earliest 

 known remains of undoubted Characece were detached fruits 

 recorded from the Lias and Oolite, the earliest remains of the 

 vegetative parts being those in the Middle Purbeck beds. 



He explained that by Mr. Keid's method of subjecting slices of 

 the limestone, in which the plants were found, to a prolonged 

 drip of very slightly acidulated water, so that the Chara-remains 

 were etched out, they had been able to elicit much fresh infor- 

 mation as to structure, which had not been obtainable from the 

 sections and polished surfaces of chert. Some lantern-slides and 

 a large number of photographs taken by Mr. Keid were exhibited, 

 with especial reference to tlie prevalent type of Characeous plant 

 which had recently been described by Messrs. Held and Groves 

 as a new genus, CJavator. The principal characteristics of this 

 were: — the constant number of the cortical tubes (12), the 

 remarkably swollen stem-nodes develo[)ed in a peculiar manner, 



