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Mar. 2.— W. H. Kitchin,— On some Curiosities of Plant Life. 



Mar. 16.— M. Pateeson, C.E. — The Life and Writings of Thomas De 

 Quincey. 



Apr. 6. Edward Atkinson, On the Postal Telegraph System. 



Apr. 20. Conversazione, Election of Officers &c. 



Hour of Meeting 8 pm. 



Mr. H. a. Fletcher gave the following report of the work of the 

 Whitehaven Society during the past session : — He was very happy to say 

 that, although they had spent about ^160 during the year in providing 

 the eases they had seen in the museum downstairs for the reception of 

 the different articles that had been presented to them, they had still a 

 very handsome balance in hand. They had this advantage, that they had 

 no rent to pay. The rooms were altogether their own property, and 

 of this they were rather proud. They had done something, it 

 would be seen, in the way of a museum, and that was one of the things 

 that the Bishop had alluded to in his address on the previous day as 

 being a very necessary and desirable thing for each Association to 

 have. It had been suggested, and he thought they would be able to 

 cany it out, that in addition to the museum they should have a small 

 library of scientific and technical books, and this will be done in the 

 ensuing year. There had been 36 new members elected during the past 

 year, and the total number now on the books was 243. The session was 

 opened as usual by a conversazione. It was very largely attended, and 

 one interesting feature connected witli it was that the visitors comprised 

 a great variety of ranks, from a young Viscount, who was heir to an 

 earldom, down to mechanics and colliers. During the session they had 

 held eleven ordinary meetings for the reading of papers. An original 

 paper was read at each of them, and he thought they had had a little more 

 discussion than in former years. The diversity of subjects was somewhat 

 considerable. Although they called themselves the Whitehaven Scientific 

 Association, they considered it within the scope of their Society to admit 

 subjects of a literary character. Of these eleven papers six had been 

 purely scientific, three arch;\3ological, and two literary. The session 

 closed with the annual meeting for the election of officers and general 



