2 



General Subjects. — " The Study of History" by Professor Edward 

 Caird; '■'■ Impurities in Raw Sugar" by John Neill, Junr., Esq., M.A. ; 

 '^ Early Russian History" by W. E. S. Ralston, Esq.; " Health in Great 

 Cities and Toivns" by B. W. Richardson, M.D., E.R.S.; ''King Lear 

 and the Tragic Drama" hj i\\& Rev. Alex. Ritchie, B.D. ; "Coleridge, 

 Wordstvorth, and Southey" by the Rev. J. M. Jarvie; " The Rebellion 

 of i'/4S" ^y Francis William Clai'k, LL.D. ; " Evolution in Relation to 

 the Argument from Design in Nature" by W. J. Marshall, M.D.; 

 "Erasmus and Sir Thomas More" by Principal TuUoch, D.D. In 

 addition to these lectures, there was a pianoforte recital by Mr Walter 

 Bache, of London. 



The Session was opened by Professor Edward Caird, who on very short 

 notice took the jjlace of Sheriff Clark, that gentleman being unavoidably 

 prevented from addressing the Society till later on. As on former occa- 

 sions, the Committee had the benefit of the co-operation of the Glasgow 

 Science Lectures Association, and Professor Graham Bell, Dr Benjamin 

 W. Richardson, and Dr Spottiswoode, addressed the Society on the 

 night after their lectures to the Association. It afforded the Committee 

 much satisfaction to be able to make arrangements whereby the Society 

 heard from Professor Bell the history of the investigations and experi- 

 ments which ultimately led to his producing the wonderful instrument 

 which has been described by Sir Wm. Thomson as " one of the most 

 interesting of the scientific inventions made in this century, or that has 

 been made in the history of science." The Watt anniversaiy lectui-e 

 was delivered by Professor P. G. Tait, of Edinburgh, whose distinction 

 as an investigator and discoverer, in those branches of science in which 

 Watt took an interest, is well known. 



It is always an object with the Committee to enlist the services of 

 some of the Members as lecturers, and during the i)ast Session they were 

 foitunate in getting the President, Mr John Neill, Junr., and also Mr T. 

 R. Ogilvie, the Rev. J. M. Jarvie, and Dr Marshall, to take a place in the 

 Society's programme. The lectures delivered by these gentlemen were 

 on sul3Jects with which they were highly qualified to deal, and were 

 most interesting and instructive. 



In one of the recent Annual Reports the Committee had to refer 

 to the death of the Society's first Pi'esident, the late Sheriff Tennent. 

 It is again their painful duty to refer to the loss the Society has sustained 

 through the death of another of its past Presidents — viz., the Rev. Dr 

 Nelson. While Dr Nelson was in ofRce, nothing could exceed the 

 attention he gave to the work of the Society; aird during his whole 

 connexion with it the interest he evinced in its affairs was of the warmest 

 and most practical kind. Whenever he thought the results of his 

 historical or other studies or his notes of foreign travel coidd be put 

 into the form of a lecture that would prove interesting to the Society, 

 he willingly placed his services at the disposal of the Committee, and it 

 "was his intention, had health permitted, to have addressed the Society 

 during the Session now ended. 



Early in the Session the Committee appointed three of theii* 

 number — viz., Dr Wilson, Dr Black, and Mr T. R. Ogilvie, to report 



