II.— STATEMENT OF PROCEEDINGS. 



The past session of tlie Society has at least been, in many respects, a busy 

 one ; and, it is a gratifying circumstance that the number of Members has 

 considerably increased. In the first year, there were 82 Members ; in the 

 second year, 115 ; and in the third, which is now closed, there have been 160. 



The Committee may with some satisfaction recall the series of papers which 

 were read during the past winter, as having been in the greatest degree 

 honorable to the authors, and as having conferred not a little distinction on 

 the meetings of the Society. The programme has been as follows : — " On the 

 Chemistry of the Colors from Coal Tar," by Mr C. G. Williams, F.R.S. ; 

 " On the recent progress of Geographical Discovery," by Mr Alex. Mackenzie, 

 M.A. ; Exhibition of Microscopical Preparations of Antique Glass, &c. , by 

 Mr W. S. Aitken ; " On Ozone," by Mr David Hill ; " On Greenwich Time, 

 and the Methods of Transmitting it," by Mr Frederick Ritchie, Edinburgh ; 

 " Notices of the Authors of 'There's nae luck about the House,' and 'The 

 Cameronian's Dream,' " by Mr vUexander Rodger ; " On Ci\dlisation," by Mr 

 James H. Stephens j "On Cyclones," by Captain Robert Paton ; "On the 

 Epic Poetry of Scotland, vsdth special reference to Blind Harry's ' Wallace,' " 

 by Mr W. S. Kemp ; "On the Intercourse between the Kingdoms of Scotland 

 and France," by Dr W. J. MacLoskey ; "On Early Celtic Art and Litera- 

 ture," by the Rev. Alex. Macbride, Kamesburgh ; " On the Life and Writings 

 of Thomas Hood," by Mr N. N. M'Lean, M.A. ; "On the Geology of the 

 Central District of Scotland," by Mr Thomas Struthers, Glasgow ; "On the 

 Correlation of the Physical Forces," byDrWm. Wallace, F.R.S.E., Glasgow ; 

 " On Decimal Arithmetic, and its application to Money, Weights, and Mea- 

 sures," by Mr Archibald Montgomerie ; "Historical Sketch of Decorative 

 Art," by Mr David Murray; "Socrates: his Life and Doctrine," by W. J. 

 Marshall, M.D. ; "Notes on some of the Peculiarities and Uses of various Plants 

 and Trees," by Mr James Miller, jun. ; "On the System of Co-operation," 

 by Mr Robert Blair ; and " Notes on the Social Condition of Greenock, with 

 special reference to (1) the State of Education, (2) the Public Health, and (3) 

 the Present Prosperity of the Working Classes," by the Rev. John Nelson. 



Our most cordial acknowledgments are due to Mr Williams, Mr Ritchie, 

 Mr Macbride, Mr Struthers, and Dr Wallace for the friendly feeling shown 

 by them in coming from a distance to illustrate subjects of so much import- 

 ance. Among our own Members, also, it will not, we trust, be regarded as 

 an invidious allusion if we make special mention of the body of Teachers, as 

 having, in this and many other ways, with infinite credit to themselves, done 

 valuable service to the Society. 



