MIDLAND UNION SOCIETIES. 141 



The SEVfntx Valley Naturalists' Field Club, founded in 1863, 

 held its first Meeting in the month of May of that yeai' at Bridgnorth. 

 It has sixty-seven Members, who pay a subscription of 5s. yearly ; a 

 number of Lady Members, who have paid an entrance fee of 5s., and 

 are virtually life Members, (without power of voting ;) twelve Honorary 

 Members, and the Officers of seven other Clubs, who are Honorary 

 Members, e.r-qflicio. One Meeting is held in the winter for business 

 purposes. Three excursions are made during the summer ; of these, two 

 occupy one day each only ; the third extends over two or three days. 

 This Club claims to have originated this form of Meeting in 1868, at 

 Llangollen, and has continued the practice every year since. It has 

 recently made a two days' visit to Tewkesbury. Mr. T. Martin 

 Southwell. 57, '^'est Cromwell Eoad, London, S.W., is President, and 

 Mr. Rowland W. Ralph, Honnington Grange, Newport, Salop, the Hon. 

 Secretary. 



The Shropshire Arch.eological and Natural History Society was 

 originally formed in 1835 and reorganised in 1877. It has 248 

 Members, each subscribing 21s. annually, and two Honorary Members. 

 It holds one Meeting and makes one excursion every year. It 

 publishes annually a volume of papers contributed by Members on 

 Archaeological subjects mainly. The Right Hon. the Earl of 

 Bradford, Weston Park, Shifnal, is President of the Society, and Mr. 

 F. Goyne, Dogpole, Shrewsbury, the Sec. 



The Tamworth Natur.al History, Geological, and Antiquarian 

 Society was formed in May, 1871, and consists of 128 Members, paying 

 OS. per annum. A Junior Branch, for young persons under the age of 

 eighteen, has been commenced this year, the subscription being Is. per 

 annum. Prizes (books) are offered to the juvenile Members, as 

 follows : — In (ieolor)!/ — For the best collection of coal measure fossils, 

 with name of locality at which each specimen is obtained. In Botany 

 — For the best twelve distinct and rarer local species of dried wild 

 flowers, with date, locality, and name. In Icthyoloinj — For the best 

 list of local fish with an account of their habits and habitats. //( 

 Entomolofiij — For the best life history of any one insect that occurs 

 locally. In Ornitholofm — For the best life history of one bird that 

 occurs locally. In Zoolnriy — For the best life history of one wild 

 animal that occurs locally. In ArcJumlofiij — For the best list of 

 distinctive names of Fields. Houses, Lanes, and Brooks in the locality, 

 stating their position. The ordinary meetings of the Society are held 

 bi-monthly : excursions are made twice or thrice a year. Twenty 

 papers have been read before the Society during the past twelve 

 months. No Annual Report is published. The Society has invited 

 the Union to hold its Annual Meeting in 1883 at Tamworth. Mr. W. 

 Lucy, J.P., Tamworth, is the President for this year, and Mr. \V. G. 

 Davy, Elford, Tamworth, the Hon. Sec. 



Corrrspnirmtf mtb ©Icmtmgs. 



— • 



CoNCHOLOGY. — Ou Satu)'day, May 6th, during an excursion to the 

 Wren's Nest, near Dudley, with the members of the Birmingham Micro- 

 scopists' and Naturalists' Union, I found one specimen of Aelmtinu 

 acicuht. a shell that is rare in this district. — J. M.vdison. 



Beavers. — To the European rivers named by Mr. E. de Hamel as still 

 frequented by Beavers the KIhe should be added. I saw an account of 



