Dec. 1904. | BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH. 53 
actions” of the Highland and Agricultural Society, from 1877 
to the last volume, 1904, give evidence of the immense amount 
of work, and that of the most valuable kind, which Dr. Aitken 
was able to perform. No one required to point out work 
for him; he was continually on the lookout for some new 
field of operation and inquiry; and few inquiries of a 
scientific nature were conducted during the whole of that 
time without his being asked to aid in carrying them out. 
He wrote papers on various subjects, many of them new to 
the agricultural world, such as, “Ground Felspar Rock as a 
source of Potash,” “Fish Dried as a Fodder for Cattle,” ete. 
One specially valuable inquiry was into the nature and feed- 
ing quality of various grasses; the nature of their growth— 
deep-rooting, or otherwise. This extended over some years, 
and was carried out in the most painstaking, thorough, and 
enlightened manner. For the last two years Dr. Aitken has 
written a summary of the results obtained from experiments 
carried out under the auspices of the agricultural colleges, 
and kindred institutions, throughout the country, and thus 
all the lessons of value from the experiments have been 
noted and put into such form as to be most easily referred to 
when wanted—a specially useful piece of work. 
The loss the agricultural community of Scotland have 
sustained by the death of Dr. Aitken is not easily estimated, 
and will be felt for many a day yet to come. He rests from 
his labours, but his works do follow him. He is dead, but 
they live. 
Mr. ALEXANDER Cowan read his report on the Scottish 
Alpine Club Botanical Excursion in 1904. 
ScoTTISH ALPINE BoTanicaAL CLUB MEETING, 1904. 
Messrs. W. B. Boyd, President; Rev. Dr. Paul, Vice 
President ; G. H. Potts; A. H. Evans ; Alex. Cowan, Honorary 
Secretary ; also Ll. J. Cocks and A. C. M. Bell, visitors. 
The club met on Monday, July 11th, and travelled from 
the Waverley Station by the forenoon train to Beauly, and 
thence drove to the Glenaffaric Hotel, Cannich, which had 
been decided upon as the place of meeting; Mr. Boyd, 
President of the Club, having arranged with Mrs. Chisholm, 
