Further particulars of the subject are given in the paper. 

 The author remarks that the records were very meagre, and 

 that these were made by men who had no special knowledge 

 of philology. The number of words in the aboriginal language 

 was small, much smaller than the lists which had been drawn 

 up would \c;\d one to expect. Many of the words, apparently 

 different, he believed to be really identical, and the apparent 

 difference was due to the habit the Tasmanians possessed, in 

 common with the South Sea Islanders, of interchanging mem- 

 bers of various sound groups. 



Mr. R. M. Johnston said their attention hitherto had been 

 confined to the things themselves, instead of to the language 

 applied to them. Both the Tasmanian and Australian races 

 would afford a great field in the future to the philological stu- 

 dent, and Dr. Noetling had opened up a question that would 

 be pursued with great interest. It was the beginning of a very 

 important study in connection with the aborigines. He pointed 

 out that already an important work had been performed in 

 getting phonographic records of some of the old aboriginal 

 songs and speeches by the late Mrs. Fanny Smith. He hoped 

 that permanent casts of these records would be made, so that 

 they could be preserved indefinitely. 



Dr. Noetling thought that Mr. R. M. Johnston's suggestion 

 that the records of Mrs. Fanny Smith's songs and speeches 

 should be preserved, was a most excellent one. 



Mr. Bernard Shaw said that he would bring the question 

 of getting permanent copies of the Fanny Smith records before 

 the Council. 



The Chairman said it was a matter of regret that so little 

 was really known of the early history of the Tasmanian natives. 

 No attempt had been made to record their language until it 

 had become to some extent corrupted by contact with Euro- 

 peans and others. 



NOVEMBER 16, 1908. 



The Monthly General Meeting of the Society was held at 

 the Museum on Monday evening, November 16, 1908. 



His Excellency the Governor, Sir Gerald Strickland, 

 K.C.M.G., President, in the chair. 



Mr. Bernard Shaw offered the President the hearty con- 

 gratulations of the Royal Society on his safe return to Tas- 

 mania. He had received numerous congratulations from 

 various public bodies since his return, but none more heartily 

 joined in them than the Fellows and Associates of the Royal 

 Society. 



The President, in reply, thanked the Fellows present very 

 heartily for their kind welcome, which reminded him of the 

 welcome extended to -him by Mr. Morton upon his arrival at 



