376 TRANSACTIONS, NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OP GLASGOW. 



and that the work which has been done is solid and valuable. 

 There are some societies which follow the course of individual 

 organisms; that is to say, they start life with a great deal of 

 vigour, they grow rapidly, and exhibit a remarkable amount 

 of vitality of a certain kind. Then a stationary period ensues, 

 when very little energy is manifested, and after that they begin 

 to show signs of senile decay. But I would rather compare the 

 Natural History Society of Glasgow to another zoological collec- 

 tion — namely, the coral — for, while its individual members are 

 continually passing away, the organism as a whole is being 

 built up by new individuals, to last for ages and ages. While 

 the Chairman was referring to the Natural Histoiy Society, I 

 was reminded of the circumstances attending the formation of 

 the Perthshire Society. That Society owes its origin to fourteen 

 gentlemen, of whom only one is now alive. The objects of the 

 two Societies are very similar, but the Perthshire Society, in 

 addition, resolved to form a complete collection of the natural 

 histoiy of their district, and during the thirty-three years of 

 the Society's existence its members have carried out that resolu- 

 tion with some considerable measure of success. I mention 

 that fact because of the great interest which the collection has 

 aroused in Perthshire, and because it has proved to be of con- 

 siderable value to students and others. I should like to see 

 the Natural History Society of Glasgow with a similar museum, 

 for, while we in Perth liave one of the richest counties in 

 Great Britain as regards fauna and flora, you in the basin of 

 the Clyde have one of the richest estuarian localities in the 

 whole kingdom; and if you had a representative collection of 

 the natural histoiy of the Clyde basin, it would be something 

 that Glasgow would be proud of for all time, and it would be 

 of immense value to students all over the country. I hope you 

 will pardon me, my Lord Provost, if I offer the suggestion that 

 one of the buildings of your late Exhibition would be an ex- 

 cellent station for such a collection. 



The Chairman intimated that in the course of the evening 

 congratulatory telegrams had been received from the following 

 gentlemen, representing kindred societies throughout the coimtry, 

 viz. : — ' 



