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eloquent address on the occasion of the adjourned An- 

 nual Meeting of May 11, and a copy was requested for 

 publication. 



The Corresponding Secretary read the following let- 

 ters, viz. : — 



From the Society of Natural Sciences of "Wiirtemberg, the 

 Geographical Society of Paris, the Royal Society of Sciences of 

 Liege, and the Smithsonian Institution, acknowletlghig the recep- 

 tion of the Society's publications ; from the "VVurtemberg Society, 

 the Entomological Society of Stettin, the Royal Society of Liege, 

 the Royal University of Christiania, and the Geological Survey 

 of India, presenting their publications. 



A letter from Mr. Chas. F. Hartt, of Wolfville, N. S., 

 in relation to minerals and fossils of the British prov- 

 inces, was referred to the Curators of Geology and Min- 

 eralogy. 



Dr. John Bacon presented the following report on the 

 " cocoa-nut pearl " referred to him for examination. 



A singular gem from Singapore, called a " cocoa-nut pearl," 

 was exhibited by Dr. C. F. Winslow at the meeting on February 

 1st, and was referred to me for microscopical and chemical analy- 

 sis. The partial examination which I have been able to make 

 shows that the body is an interesting one. Its origin was not 

 known to the owner by personal observation, but it was said to 

 be a concretion of very rare occurrence, formed in the interior of 

 the cocoa-nut. Through the politeness of the owner, Frederic 

 T. Bush, Esq., I was requested to use one half or more of the 

 pearl for analysis. As a section passing through the centre was 

 desirable, I had it so divided by a lapidary, and employed one 

 half for making several sections in different directions for exam- 

 ination under the microscope and for chemical analysis. The 

 remaining half, now exhibited, has been reset in the ring, and 

 presents the same appearance as formerly. 



The peculiar characters of this gem are most readily described 

 by comparison with those of animal pearls, which it resembles in 



