18 

 1886. 



I"eb 2nd. — An Autumn Holiday Tour : Rev. Brooke Lambert. Member. 

 March 2nd. — The Lion and its Kindred : Mr. Goodchild, Non-uiember. 

 April 6th. — Liquid Air : Dr. Armstrong. Member. 



May 4th. — Mineral Illuminating Oils and Lamps : Mr. G. Phillips. Member, 

 Nov. 2nd. — The Musical Dramas of Wagner : Mr. C. Armbruster. Non-member. 

 Dec. 7th. — Apes and their Allies : Mr. Goodchild. Non-member. 



It will he admitted, I believe, by those who have been present 

 at the meetini^s that the lectures, papers, &c., have, as a rule, been 

 successes in point of subject-matter and style ; and that some, and 

 I may especially instance the Rev. Brooke Lambert's most valuable 

 Essay on Cremation, deserve to be more widely distributed than 

 among the nairow circle of readers of our Reports. 



Of the 57 paper,s, &c, of which I have given the titles, 28 

 have been read by Members and 29 by Non-members; the dis. 

 proportion will apjiear still greater if it be remembered that some 

 of us have come forward on more than one occasion — too often, 

 perliaps. Tliisisnotas it should be. I cannot believe that local 

 talent docs not exist in amount sufficient more nearly to supply the 

 needs of the Association : either it is too modest, or it has not 

 yet risen to that high sense of duty which the occasion demands ; 

 proliably, however, this is our fault, and is attributable to oui not 

 yet having made known clearly and widely enough our aims 

 and objects. 



Having said so much regarding the one class of our members 



the improvers, let me now turn to the other class — those willing 



to be improved. Have they done their duty — in what does their 

 duty consist? Obviously their duty is to attend the meetings 

 regularly and thus encourage those who are doing their best to 

 contribute to their information, I need scarcely point out that 

 nothing is more discouraging to a lecturer than to see a small 

 audience; and that the failure of Members to attend places the 

 Executive in a very difficult position, greatly militating against 

 their efforts to induce competent men to come forward and address 

 the Association. Of late the attendance has more often than not 

 been far fron satisfactory, and not only in point of numbers: 

 those who have looked around the room will have noticed that the 

 majority of those present have been elderly Members and ladies. 



