Proceedings. li 



Botany, and two others for Molluscs. There was nothing of any 

 importance taken, biit all enjoyed the excursion, which was 

 favoured by splendid weather. We had tea together at Leather- 

 head on returning, and reached Croydon about eight o'clock." 



The half-day's excursion on August 28th to Merstham and 

 Chaldou was a very pleasant and successful one. The day was 

 beautifully fine, and on this, as on the "Whit Monday excursion, 

 we were greatly indebted to Mr. E. Straker for his guidance of 

 the party. The now well-known wall-paintings in Chaldon 

 Church were one of the main attractions of the day. Several 

 cameras were brought by the members present and photographs 

 of the church taken ; but the light was very difficult to manage, 

 coming in the wrong direction, and I doubt if the results Avere 

 very satisfactory. From Chaldou we made for Farthing Down, 

 a rather remarkable spur of the chalk range, covered with 

 beautiful turf, and with the remains of many barrows upon it. 

 A very beautiful walk thence brought us to Kenley, where we 

 were most hospitably entertained by Mr. E. Straker at his father's 

 residence there. 



Of the remaining two excursions on our programme, that to 

 Hayes and Keston on September 18th and to Chingford for a 

 Fungus Foray with the Essex Club on October 2nd, I can 

 unfortunately give no account. I believe none of oiu- members 

 participated in the latter. 



Our Photographic Section has been most active during the 

 past season, and several verj^ agreeable and successful Saturday 

 afternoon rambles with the camera have taken place. The 

 results of their work showed to great advantage, as we shall all 

 remember, at the Soiree, of which it now only remains for me to 



Soiree, November 17th, 1886. — Our Seventeenth Annual Soiree 

 was held on November 17th, in the two halls in the building, 

 and the improvement effected by the construction of a corridor 

 or lobby between them was greatly appreciated by the company. 

 The Large Hall was as usual devoted chiefly to the microscopes, 

 of which 142 were exhibited, an increase of 5 over last year; they 

 were contributed as to 92 by members of twelve Clubs besides 

 our own, 39 were shown by our own members, and 11 by 

 exhibitors unattached to any Club. The Small Hall was devoted 

 to exhibits of interesting objects of Natural History, Ethnology, 

 and the Arts. Of those that will occur first to the memory of 

 those who were present, I may safely place the most interesting 

 and instructive collection of light-producing apparatus of all ages 

 and climes brought together by Mr. Edward Lovett and Mr. 

 Bidwell. The lamps of antiquity, the flint-strikers, and the more 

 modern but now obsolete rushlight, which I well remember in 



