16 
Anxntat Mretinc—Janudry 2517H, 1887. 
The annual meeting of tne members of this society was held at 
the Town Hall. on Tuesday evening, Dr. Fitz-Gerald presiding. 
There were also present Dr. T. Kastes, the Rev. A. L. Hussey, the 
Rev. W. Hall, and Messrs. Walton, Knight, H. Ullyett, Hon. Sec., 
A. H. Ullyett, and others, together with a good number of lady 
members. 
The President lent a number of very interesting photographs, 
among them being a portrait of Rameses II. (Pharaoh, the oppressor 
of the Israelites in Egypt), taken from his mummy recently 
discovered. The business commenced with the reading of the 
Secretary’s Report as follows :— 
“«T am happy in being able on this our 19th annual meeting to 
congratulate the Society on its continued prosperity and success ; 
the number of members during the past year has been 106, and 
all the meetings have been well attended. Our balance sheet leaves 
us just solvent, and we havea reserve fund of £20 in the bank. That 
sum, as you are aware, was given by one of our members on her leav- 
ing Folkestone—Mrs. Rumsey, a lady whose face was familiar 
at all our meetings, and who evinced great interest in our work. 
This, the first donation, we have received, will it is hoped, be fol- 
lowed by others, in which case the scope of the Society’s work may 
be very muchenlarged. I regret to say that two of our members 
have been removed by death—Mr. Arthur H. Taylor, who was an 
ardent naturalist, and Mr. J. W. Roberts, of Cheriton Gardens. 
During the year 1886 we have held eight meetings, one of which 
was on the Warren. The following papers have been read :— 
The President’s Address at the annual meeting in January. 
Darwin and his opinions, by Mr. Smurthwaite. 
Man and his relation to the lower animals, by the Rev. J. R. 
Duke, M.A. 
The theory of Malthus in relation to Darwinism, by the Secretary. 
Common objects of our shore, by Mr. Walton. 
The Colour of Leaves, by Mr. Gorham, of Tonbridge. 
Sponges, by Dr. T. Hastes. 
Degraded Forms of Animal Life, by the Secretary. 
Very fair discussions have followed some of these papers. The 
approaching completion of the new building on Grace Hill, where 
the library, reading room, museum, and science classes will all be 
sheltered under one roof, is the realization of a dream, in which 
some of us have indulged for several years. I think nothing 
redounds so much to the honour of the ratepayers of Folkestone 
as the fact that they themselves demanded this ‘building to be 
erected, and that at their own expense. Let us hope that a school 
