XIU 



cated knowledge of earth-tremors in any 

 part of the Avorld. That was one of the 

 additional pieces of work that the ob- 

 servatorj^ staff would be glad to under- 

 take, if placed in a position to do so. 



Hon. N. J. Brown spoke of the ef- 

 forts of the late Sir Joseph Abbott and 

 himself at the Federal Conventions at 

 Adelaide, Sydney, and Melbourne to 

 have astronomical and meteorological 

 observations included in the subjects to 

 be dealt with by the Federal Parliament. 

 and of the great benefit these observa- 

 tions were to persons engaged in pastor- 

 al and agricultural pusuits. Accuracy 

 and continuity throughout the Common- 

 wealth were important. It was now 

 probable that the whole of the Barrack 

 "Reserve" at Hobart would be placed at 

 the disposal of the inhabitants, and the 

 observatory would have, to be removed. 

 But this need not be regretted, as the 

 accuracy of the instruments was inter- 

 fered with by the ironstone rock of the 

 place. He moved, — •'That the Coun- 

 cil be requested to arrange for a depu- 

 tation of its members to wait upon the 

 Hon. the Premier for the purpose of urg- 

 ing that the reply to be sent to the Act- 

 ing Premier of the Commonwealth to 

 the queries as to the present staff, cost, 

 and equipment of the meteorological es- 

 tablishment of Tasmania should be ac- 

 companied with a statement that the 

 present arrangements for astronomical 

 and meteorological observations are al- 

 together inadequate, and that in the 

 general interests of the Commonwealth 

 it will be necessary in the future to pro- 

 vide for a fuller equipment, and a better 

 paid staff, as suggested by Mr. Clement 

 Wragge in his report to the Tasmanian 

 Government, dated August, 1895, and 

 by Commander Purey-Cust, dated April 

 5, 1894, and laid upon the table of the 

 House of Assembly on July 10, 1894." 



Hon. A. Douglas seconded the resolu- 

 tion, which was adopted. 



Tasmanian Conchology. 

 A paper by Mr. C. Hedley, F.L.S., en- 

 titled ''Notes on Tasmanian Conchology^' 

 The author said : — "The study of 

 Tasmanian conchology has been 

 facilitated by an excellent catalogue 

 published lasit year by the late Professor 

 Tate and Mr. W. L. May in the proceed- 

 ings of the Linnean Society _ of New 

 South Wales. Therein certain &pecies 

 ascribed to Tasmania by the Rev. J. E, 

 Tenison Woods were rejected from the 

 fauna chiefly because no later obs'erver 



had taken them. Though apparently of 

 foreign origin, their exclusion could not 

 be wholly justified until that origin was 

 ascertained. At the invitation of 

 Messrs. A. Morton and W. L. May I 

 undertook their examination. From 

 the result it appearc that five West In- 

 dian species wckj supplied to Tenison 

 Woods, which he erroneously described 

 as Tasmanian, and as new to science." 



On the ''Advantages of Forest Con- 

 servation," by Mr. C. B. Target: — 



Mr. C. B. Target read the following 

 paper," On the advantages of Forest 

 Conservation" : — 



First, as to the term forest. In England 

 a forest is a place reserved for wild beasts 

 of the cbase. and is not necessarily cover- 

 ed with timber. I \ Scotland many of the 

 deer forests have few trees. On the con- 

 trary, on the Continent of _ Europe, a 

 forest is an agglomeradon of timber trees 

 divided into two niiun dasses! — pure urd 

 mixed. The former is when the forest 

 consists of only cue species of timber; the 

 latter when there are several kinds grow- 

 ing together. 



it is in the Coutiuental sense that <ba 

 term is used in this paper; also, it relates 

 more to sylviculture , which refers to woods 

 and forests, rachei thaa to arboriculture, 

 which deals only witn woods and planta- 

 tions. In the one the tree is the unit, 

 and the wood is cousiae.ed a collection of 

 trees; in the other tae wood is the unit, 

 and the trees are cunsxde^ed only as its 

 constituent paris. 



In Britain sheltei is the primary object 

 of the woods; on tue Continent of Europe 

 the material, or puunrary, product is of 

 primary importance. 



In an address by Dr. Tholard, he says: — 

 When the mouUcaii^s aroe in the geologi- 

 cal revolutions winch gave them birth, 

 they must have prcsentei ihemselvee in 

 the condition of baie rocks or banks of 

 solidified matter, wiLhout trace of vegeta- 

 tion. They firs I. cram bled by the action 

 of water; this was iol owed by a chemical 

 action, due to carbo..ic acid, which, com- 

 bining with the aika.ine elements of the 

 rocks, decomposed and dissolved them; 

 thus 'wa« produced a .ayer of soil capable 

 of sustaining vegetation; ihen the first 

 forms of vegetable Ufa ,of wnich the seeds 

 were air-borne, the roots working down- 

 wards and assistiiig to crumble the rock, 

 and by their dec mpjsic.on, when they 

 died, improving the soil, till at last large 

 trees could be supported, the seeds of 

 which do not germinate, except on soil 

 which has been previo isly occupied and 

 prepared for them bv otner vegetables. ^ 



Amongst other things, it has been notic- 

 ed by Marsh that wne::ever a tract of 

 country, once inh ;bited and cultivated by 



