THE JOURNAL 



OF THE 



SOUTH AFRICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS' UNION. 



Vol. I. JULY 1905. No. 1. 



I. — Address delivered by the Chairman, Mr. W. L. Sclater, 

 M.A., at the Inaugural Meeting. 



Befoee commencing my address, let me congratulate you 

 all who are here on your presence to-day at the founding of 

 our proposed new Society or Union for the study of South 

 African ornithology. 



I am sure that you will all join with me in wishing it a 

 long and prosperous life, and that by its means our know- 

 ledge of South African ornithology — now, alas ! in a very 

 backward state — may be increased and furthered. 



In this respect South Africa offers a strong contrast not 

 only to the United States, but also to India and Australia, 

 although South Africa has had a white population settled 

 here for so much longer than either ; but I hope that the 

 stimulus offered by our new Union, and by our proposed 

 journal, will bring together our hitherto scatt(;red naturalists, 

 and will encourage them to keep careful records of their 

 observations and to publish them. 



The oldest and most celebrated of the societies similar to 

 the one we are proposing to start is undoubtedly the British 

 Ornithologists' Union, which was established in 1858 by a 

 small band of gentlemen interested in the study and progress 

 of ornithology, chief among whom were the late Lords Lilford 

 and Waldeu, John Henry Gurney, and Osbert Salvin; while 



VOL. I. 1 



