38 HISTORY OF THE FOUNDATIOx\ OF THE 



saying that he thought he should not be able to express his 

 view more strongly than by saying that in his opinion the 

 proceedings ot that afternoon had been taken many years 

 too late. When we remembered our great maritime power, 

 that our coasts extended for tens of thousands of miles, and 

 in all latitudes, and that England was mistress of the seas, 

 it seemed to him nothing short of a national disgrace that 

 we alone should have been so long content with having 

 hitherto done little or nothing in the way of systematic 

 investigation of the mai'ine zoology of our own shores. But 

 if such had been our amazing apathy in the past, the best 

 they could do was to retrieve the error by striking while 

 the iron was hot, viz. by constituting themselves a Society, 

 with an executive committee. The list of names was one 

 of very great force, and it would be difficult to add to 

 its force. Professor Flower had said that each speaker 

 should contribute one point to the discussion. He (Mr. 

 Eomanes) should like to observe that there was one func- 

 tion of the proposed Laboratory which had not received the 

 attention it appeared to him to deserve ; he meant the in- 

 vestigation of invertebrate physiology. In the invertebrate 

 forms of life we saw life in its simplest shape, and in the 

 shape which best admitted of observation and experiment, 

 with the view of throwing light upon most of the great 

 questions relating to the processes of life. Where were 

 they to look for the material for this investigation ? Un- 

 questionably to the sea, which was the great magazine of 

 such life. He therefore looked forward with some con- 

 fidence to the time when it would certainly not be con- 

 sidered the least important function of the newly-formed 

 Society to investigate the physiology of the invertebrate 

 forms of life. 



Professor Lankestee moved a vote of thanks to Professor 

 Huxley for taking the chair, which was seconded by Sir 

 Joseph Fayree. Before putting the vote, Professor Lan- 

 kester mentioned that it was hoped that they might raise a 

 fund of from £6000 to £10,000 for the purpose of starting 

 one Laboratory, and it would now be possible for indi- 

 viduals who took an interest in the proceedings of the 



