17 
Church forbade fish as an alternative to meat on fast 
days. Leprosy has always been prevalent in Roman 
Catholic centres and disappears when the habit of 
fasting is discontinued. When better food is obtained 
the disease inevitably dies out. 
Dr. F. Womack explained and demonstrated 
the properties of Radium, Exhibits were kindly lent 
by Prof. Flinders Petrie, F.R.S., Mr. Frank Pod- 
more, by members of the North London Natural 
History Society and others. During the evening a 
selection of music was given by Misses Frances and 
Amabel Marshall, Miss Ada Stuart, Miss Ruth Sand- 
ham, Miss May Walker and Dr. Ronald Carter. 
Friday, December 4th, 1903. Sir Samuel Wilks, 
Bt., F.R.S., President, in the Chair. 
Dr. J. G. Garson, gave a lecture upon ‘‘ Finger 
Prints and their Use as a Means of Identifica- 
tion.”’ He began by describing the two kinds of 
markings that exist on the palmar surface of the hand: 
from before birth onwards. The first of these and the 
most noticeable are the lines of folding of the skin, 
most marked opposite the joints; but the most 
numerous are series of alternating ridges and furrows 
which are distributed over the whole surface of the 
hand, although more marked in certain parts of i 
than in others. On the tops of the ridges are 
situated the openings of the sweat glands, and under 
them the terminals of the nerves of touch are most 
numerously situated. They appear, therefore, to have: 
a close relation to the sense of touch, and, from the 
roughened surface they produce, play an important 
function in improving the power of grasping objects 
which on a smooth surface would have a tendency to 
slip. They are most strongly developed on the hands 
of persons who do a moderate amount of manual 
labour. Hard labour and no labour at all tend to 
