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who knew his worth, as a token of regard to his widow (which even at this moment 

 seems to watch over our proceedings), must ever remind this Society, when 

 assembled in this room, of many pure and happy hours spent together in the 

 investigation of God's Works ! 



We are now assembled together for the third time for om- Winter Meeting, 

 and to elect a new President. Allow me, then, without affectation or reserve, 

 to thank you all cordially for the honour you have done me in calling me to the 

 Chair during the past year, as well as for the courtesy and kindness with which 

 my humble efforts have been received. 



It has been the custom that the President should each year address at this 

 meeting a short recapitulation of the proceedings of the Club ; but as, at both 

 our Leominster and Monmouth Cap Meetings, I went through much of our 

 " sayings and doings," it would be perhaps more interesting if I address you 

 to-day upon some occurrences which have since arisen, which affect the Woolhope 

 Club in their character of Naturalists. 



You will remember the paper I had the honour of reading upon the Old Red 

 Sandstone, and the remarks I felt bound to make upon the wretched collection 

 of fossils from that system, so characteristic of this county, obtained by our 

 working geologists. 



I then said " The practical value of a local collection depends chiefly upon 

 the history of individual specimens. A fossil from the Old Red Sandstone of 

 Herefordshire has a value far beyond any accident of fineness or rarity ; it is 

 illustrative of the history of the geology of our native county," .... and 

 " I would rather see in Hereford an herbarium containing a good collection of 

 Herefordshire plants, presented by one of the many good botanists the county 

 can boast of, than aU the foreign specimens of the British Museum." 



You will call to mind the delight we experienced in finding, on our Leominster 

 expedition, a true fish bed containing great numbers of the relics of those re- 

 markable denizens of an ocean long since passed away, and rendered classical by 

 the writings of Hugh Miller and Agassiz. I little thought at the time we were 

 examining the plates and heads and tails of the Cephalaspides of Leysters Pole 

 that, in a few weeks I should have the pleasure of making the acquaintance of the 

 celebrated Scotch geologist, of examining in his cabinet the analogues of our 

 Herefordshire fishes, and conversing with him on the similarity of the deposit, 

 and the identity of the organic remains that occur in spots so far distant as the 

 quarries of our native county and the north of Scotland. Most heartily do I thank 

 the kind friend who afforded me the opportunity ! Both Mr. Hugh Miller and 

 Professor E. Forbes (alas, now no more !) were anxious that I should introduce 

 our Herefordshire specimens to the notice of the many distinguished geologists 

 assembled at the British Association for the advancement of Science at Liverpool, 

 and I immediately wrote to our Honorary Secretary (Mr. Suter) to furnish me 

 with all the specimens he could collect at so short a notice. He kindly and 

 promptly acquiesced in my request, and I have to thank Mr. Suter, Mr. Barker, 

 and Lord Ducie for the loan of those fossils which I had the honour of exhibiting. 



