18 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST, 



found, and the current-bedded sand of the old river bed, on 

 which the basalt, over one hundred feet in thickness, rests, was 

 seen exposed in one portion of the quarry floor. 



The hon. Ubrarian reported the receipt of the following 

 donations to the library : — Journal of Agriculture of Victoria, 

 vol. iii., part 2, March, 1905, from the Secretary for Agriculture; 

 Geelong Naturalist, new series, vol. i., part 4, December, 1904, 

 from the Geelong Field Naturalists' Club ; " Monograph of the 

 Silurian and Devonian Fossils of New South Wales," from the 

 Department of Mines, Sydney ; " Report of Fisheries Depart- 

 ment, New South Wales," 1903, from the Department; Agricul- 

 tural Gazette of New South Wales, vol. xvi., part 2, February, 

 1905, from the Department of Agriculture, Sydney; "Forest 

 Flora of New South Wales," vol. li., part 5, by J. H. Maiden, 

 F.L.S., Government Botanist, from the author. 



ELECTION OF MEMBERS. 



On a ballot being taken, Prof. E. W. Skeats, D.Sc, Melbourne 

 University; Miss E. S. Booth, Oakover, Coburg ; Miss D. E. H. 

 Booth, 25 Rathdown-street, Carlton ; Mr. H. T. Coles, 337-339 

 Elizabeth-street, Melbourne; Mr. F. P. Godfrey, 70 Avoca- 

 street. South Yarra ; Mr. C. P. Kinane, 37 Hope-street, South 

 Yarra ; Mr. J. Isl. Stephens, Croyden, Heidelberg-road, Fairfield ; 

 Miss Randell, Primrose-street, Essendon ; Miss J. W^hite, B.Sc, 

 Observatory Quarters, South Yarra, were elected as ordinary 

 members ; Messrs. Edgar J. Christian, Alma-road, Caulfield ; 

 James M. Thomson, Hawthorn-grove, Hawthorn; M. Batelier, 

 44 Howard-street, North Melbourne, as associates ; and Masters 

 Norman Barnard, A. W. Le Souef, and James Schreuder as 

 junior members of the Club. 



GENERAL BUSINESS. 



After the nominations of office-bearers for 1905-6 had been 

 made, Messrs. D. Best and G. Weindorfer were appointed to audit 

 the accounts for the past year. 



PAPERS READ. 



I. By Mr. J. A. Hill, entitled "Fights between two Species 

 of Ants." 



The author gave a description of the severe encounters which 

 he had observed as occurring at Kewell (Winimera District) 

 between a large and a very small species of ant, the latter by 

 weight of numbers always being victorious. Whether the raids, 

 and subsequent conflicts, are made for the possession of the nest, 

 or for the object of securing the feeding-ground, could not be 

 determined. 



In the discussion that followed the reading of the paper Mr. 

 J. A. Kershaw, F.E.S., remarked that it was probable that the 

 raids are undertaken, not only for the possession of the nests, 

 but for the purpose of securing the pupae, with the object of 

 rearing them for slaves. Slave-making ants were common to 



