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spheres of occupation, those who have preceded us displayed to its interests and to 

 the purposes of its being. With several points before me to which I wish briefly 

 to call your attention, I can do no more than advert in very few words to the 

 series of Field Meetings which have been held during the past season. With the 

 single exception of the Wormsley Meeting in August (when, however, it must 

 needs be said an unusually heavy and persistently continuous downpour of rain 

 was unequal to shake the fidelity or damp the courage of a large number of 

 members who attended it), and possibly with the exception too of that held at 

 Church Stretton in July, when the unfortunate concurrence of other engagements 

 prevented so large a gathering as we are accustomed to upon the " Ladies' Day," 

 we may claim, I think, for these a full measure of our ordinary success. The first 

 meeting at Old Eadnor, taken in connection with that at Church Stretton to 

 which I have alluded, afforded a singularly favourable opportunity, upon the 

 same axis of upheaval, for the study of those very early rocks, technically known 

 as the "Archaan," whose obscure history is just now engaging so deeply the 

 attention of the geologic world ; while at the latter place we had the additional 

 advantage of the viva voce exposition of the President of the Caradoc Field Club 

 of the striking features of that locality, and of a paper read by him, in which 

 Professor Lapworth had been kind enough to summarize the results of recent 

 discoveries made by himself and Dr. Callaway among the rocks of the Cambrian 

 series. These are of extreme intere.st. Among tlie papers which were read to us 

 I would particularly notice one b}' Mr. Blashill, read at Kington, on "A Romance 

 of Beetle Life ; " one by the Eev. Thomas Powell, at Snodhill Castle, on the 

 history of that somewhat secluded spot; one by Mr. Warde Fowler on "The 

 Pied Flycatcher," and one by the Rev. M. Watkins on "The Migration of Birds," 

 both read at Moorhampton ; one too on the " Antiquities of Weobley," delivered 

 partly at the Church of that place and partly during our halt at the fine 

 old Tudor mansion of "The Ley," near to Weobley, by the Rev. Chancellor 

 Phillott, and one given by Mr. Hutchinson at Brinsop Court. My personal 

 thanks, as I am sure those of the Club at large, are due to the gentlemen 

 who added in this way so much of interest to our excursions. Acting on the 

 expressed wish of our mycological friends, who had found that locality in 1887 

 exceedingly suitable to the object of their quest, the Fungus Foray of last autumn 

 took place in the Forest of Dean, head quarters being established at the Speech- 

 house in the Forest. I can answer for myself, and I believe also for all those who 

 met there, that the visit was a most enjoyable one ; although, either from the 

 peculiarity of the season or from the fact that we were there too early or 

 too late, I hardly know which, the spoil of fungi gathered did not come up 

 to the expectations that had been formed in quantity or in variety. There 

 arise out of this short retrospect of our proceedings in the field one or two 

 subjects on each of which I beg to say a word. The first is suggested by a repre- 

 sentation which was made to us by Mr. J. W. Lloyd as to the ruthless way in 

 which plants of the Royal fern (Osmunda rcgalis), were being taken from their 

 favourite habitat at Rhos Goch, and hawked about the neighbourhood for sale. 

 He suggested that by way of forestalling the speedy extirpation of the plant in 



