Vol. Ill 



1904 



Australasian Ornithologists' Union. 1 43 



of the national scientific institutions of Australasia, I may be per- 

 mitted to express my gratification that the capital city of our 

 state, and the favourite watering-place of Australasia, was chosen 

 for this meeting. It is to be sincerely hoped that their stay in 

 Hobart will leave a pleasing recollection in the memories of those 

 here present, and that at no distant date this fair city may again 

 be chosen for our rendezvous. 



Before commencing the subject-matter of this, the third 

 address which I have had the honour of giving you during the 

 term of my presidentship, it is right that I should express my 

 regret that at the first two Congresses held, and which took 

 place at Adelaide and Melbourne respectively, I was unable, 

 through pressure of military duty, to be present ; and at the 

 same time personally express my thanks to those who kindly 

 read what I had to say at those gatherings. 



Our Union has now been in existence a little more than 

 two years, and it is a matter for congratulation on all sides that 

 it has been such a success, and that as a biological organization 

 it has become a worthy scion of what we must look upon as the 

 parent one — the British Ornithologists' Union. When I had the 

 pleasure of giving you my inaugural address, in 1901, it will be 

 within your recollection that much stress was laid on the advis- 

 ability of working on the lines of the B.O.U. and of conducting 

 our journal, The Emu, as much on the pattern of The Ibis as 

 possible, and endeavouring to extend the sphere of our work 

 beyond the confines of Australia — to Austro-Malaya, Polynesia, 

 and New Zealand, in order to endow our journal with interest 

 for European and American readers, and thus raise the scientific 

 standard of our " organ " and of the Union in general. It is 

 no doubt with sincere pleasure that we now see these desiderata 

 being gradually evolved, even though the Union is still in its 

 infancy. There are now 200 members on the roll, and the 

 increase for this year has been 15 in Victoria, 1 in New South 

 Wales, 2 in Queensland, 4 in Tasmania, 2 in U.S. of America, 

 and 2 in Europe. I express my sincere regret at the death of 

 Dr. Snowball, one of our first members, and belonging to the 

 State of Victoria. The acquisition of members from the European 

 and American " Regions" — if I may use this term in an orni- 

 thological sense — speaks volumes for the popularity of so young 

 an institution, and redounds immensely to the credit of our 

 energetic secretary, Mr. D. Le Souef, and likewise to the able 

 manner in which our joint editors are conducting the journal. 

 We have a valued correspondent in Captain Hutton in New 

 Zealand, which annexes that territory to our sphere of operations ; 

 and it is much to be desired that we should acquire some relation- 

 ship with New Guinea and Java — both ornithological areas of 

 the highest interest to Australian workers in our particular 

 branch of science. 



My fellow-members may hold that this is looking too far ahead ; 

 but, in spite of the vast territory comprised in our island con- 



