462 
Monpay, FEBRUARY 9TH; 1857. 
JAMES HENTHORN TODD, D.D., PRESIDENT, 
in the Chair. 
Rosert M‘Donne Lt, Esq., M.B., and Frederick Field, Esq., 
were elected Members of the Academy. 
Sir William R. Hamilton read a paper on the Icosian 
Calculus. 
Mr. J. M. Kemble, at the request of the President, deli- 
vered an Address on the utility of antiquarian collections in 
relation to the pre-historic annals of the different countries of 
Europe, with especial reference to the Museum of the Aca- 
demy. 
«Dr. Topp, AND GENTLEMEN OF THE Roya. IrisH 
Acapsemy,—I should be guilty of great affectation were I to 
pretend that I thought what I mean to say was entirely devoid 
of novelty and interest to you. It is, in fact, mainly on ac- 
count of the extensive opportunities which I have enjoyed of 
seeing what is new to many of us in the various European 
collections, that I am this evening called upon to address you. 
Nor can I venture to plead that T am notin the habit of putting 
forward my views in public whenever it appears to me de- 
sirable for our common study that it should be done; but still, 
I may justly say, that I never rose under feelings of greater 
embarrassment than at present, to address anyacademical body. 
I feel abashed at the extent of the subject itself with which I 
have to deal, and painfully aware how small a part of it I can 
treat of with satisfaction, either to yourselves or myself, within 
the limits of one short evening. I am not the less painfully 
aware that I am addressing a body of gentlemen who have 
bestowed great zeal and labour upon this subject, and whose 
ete Metin tat on i aati ttt, 
