II.— STATEMENT OF PEOCEEDINGS. 



The Society closes its seventh winter with a small balance of cash in 

 the Treasurer's hands, and with, perhaps, as fair a prospect of continued 

 existence as it has at any time ever had. The number of Members during 

 the past Session has been 155, and the number of Tickets taken out for 

 Ladies and Youths, 111. 



The Programme of Papers and Lectures delivered at the Friday Even- 

 ing Meetings is as follows : — 



Subjects in Science : — " The Geological Survey of Scotland," by Mr 

 Archibald Geikie, F.E.S. ; " The Present State of Knowledge regarding 

 Meteors and Meteorites," by Mr Alex. S. Herschel, B.A., F.K.A.S. ; 

 " The Animal Kingdom of the Ancient World " (two lectures), by Mr B. 

 Waterhouse Hawkins, F.L.S. ; "Notes on Geographical Discovery and 

 Eesearch in the 19th Century," by Dv Alex. Keith Johnston, F.R.S.E. ; 

 " Revelations of the Microscope," by Dr W. S. Aitken ; "Observing 

 Astronomy in the time of Newton, and its relation to the Theory of 

 Gravitation," by Professor Eobert Grant, F.E.S. — all illustrated with 

 diagrams and sketches, some of them very extensively. 



In Litekature, History, and Travel:— "Old Church Eecords of 

 Greenock, touching Men, Manners, and Localities about the Year 1700," 

 by Eov. James Eankin, MA. ; " EecoUections of a Three Years' Eesi- 

 dence in St Petersburg," by Mr James Miller Jr.; " Scotch and English 

 Ballads," and " Scotch Literature to the close of the 16th Century," by 

 Professor John Nichol, B.A. ; " The Antiquities of Scotch Trade," by 

 Professor Cosmo Innes, M.A. ; " Scotch Proverbs," by Eev. Dr J. M. 

 M'Culloch. 



Readings : — " Eichard Brinsley Sheridan, his Life, Times, and Writ- 

 ings — with illustrative Eeadings," by Mr G. W. Baynham; and 

 "Shakspere's Hamlet, with Eeadings of the Principal Scenes" by Mr 

 Allan Park Paton. 



On this occasion we have again to acknowledge the friendly co-opera- 

 tion of the eminent record-scholar. Professor Innes, and of Mr Geikie, the 

 director of H.M. Geological Survey of Scotland, whose good offices have 

 always been hberally exercised for the benefit of the Society- 



It is also our very agreeable duty now to ofi'er our special thanks to 

 those Members and other friends in Greenock who have done us the 

 favor to prepare papers during the Session, namely— Dr M'Culloch and 

 Mr Eankin ; Mr Miller, Dr Aitken, and Mr Paton. 



The Lecture in honor of the Anniversary of Watt's Birth was this year 

 obligingly written by Dr Alexander Keith Johnston, of Edinburgh, whose 

 ambition and whose distinguished lot it has been at once to exalt and to 

 popularise the science of Geography in this country. 



The lecture by Dr Keith Johnston, and that by Mr Rankin, have, with 



