88 Cincinnati Society of Natural History. 



In connection with the question of extending the inlluence of 

 the society, it should be remembered that next year the Centennial 

 of our State will be cele])rated in this city, and it may not be a 

 great deal too early to begin thinking as to what it is possible and 

 best for this society to do for herself on that occasion. 



Lectures. 

 Two very successful courses of lectures have been conducted 

 in the lecture-room of the museum during the winter. The first of 

 these was a course for the teachers of the public schools, given by 

 Dr. C. E. Caldwell, on physiology and comparative anatomy. The 

 course comprised ten lectures, and Dr. Caldwell rendered each of 

 the subjects treated very interesting and profitable to his hearers. 

 The number of membership tickets issued for this course was 55, 

 distributed as follows : ' 



r District school, 25 

 Cincinnati 31 teachers distributed \ Normal 2 



(_ Intermediate'. . 2 



Covington 11 J Teachers 29 



Newport 13 ( Principals. ... 2 



The attendance at first was cpiite full, and though falling off 

 somewhat toward the latter part of the course, yet the attendance 

 throughout was very satisfactory. The decrease in attendance can 

 not be attributed to either a lack of interest or to the methods of 

 conducting the course, but rather to the fact that Saturday is the 

 only free day of the week for the teacher, and the ordinary duties 

 of study on this day are very considerable, besides necessary rest 

 and recreation, and further to the unfortunate fact that school 

 boards are not satisfied with five days of good work from the 

 teachers, but oblige them to give up a portion of the sixtli to 

 attend teachers' meeiing; it is to these circumstances that we must 

 attribute the small attendance on lectures intended especially for 

 for teachers. Similar lecture courses have been conducted by 

 other scientific societies, notably the New York Academy of 

 Sciences, and Boston Society of Natural History. 



The sixth course of Free Popular Scientific Lectures was in 

 every respect successful, and the lecture committee consisting of 

 Mr. Wm. H. Knight, Chairman, Mr. J. Ralston Skinner and Miss 

 Anna Brown, deserve hearty commendation for their selection of 

 lecturers and the general conduct of the course. Lectures were 

 given as follows : 



