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the most influential and certainly one of the most useful members 

 our Society has had for a long time. Like all societies we have 

 had our losses. You heard those who had been taken from us 

 by death during the last year in the Secretary's report, and I wish 

 particularly to again bring to your notice the names of two 

 Honorary Members, Mr Elis Nilson and Dr Nisbet, who have 

 been taken from us by death. Some of you knew Mr Nilson 

 possibly better than I did, and some possibly knew Dr Nisbet 

 better than I did, but I knew him very well and I am sure we 

 all feel his loss very greatly — a loss to Scotland, a loss to 

 silviculture, and a very great loss to the Society. Coming to 

 the report which was presented to you, it is possibly the 

 Chairman's business to amplify it in some small particulars. You 

 heard that we had now got an Index to the Transactions com- 

 pleted through the generosity of Lord Crawford, for which we 

 thank him very much as being a work very necessary to the 

 Society, and one which will become of greater value as time 

 goes on. That Index has now been brought up to date, and I 

 trust it will be continued in time to come. Various other 

 matters are referred to. One is the Nursery and Plantation 

 competitions for which the Society has been awarding medals 

 and prizes for the last two or three years. There is a suggestion, 

 and 1 think a very good one, that the scope of those awards 

 should be enlarged, and that the whole idea of the woodland 

 management of an estate might well be taken into account in 

 making those awards, and in that particular matter I think we 

 might look to the Board of Agriculture to assist us. We say 

 sometimes hard things about the Board of Agriculture, but I 

 think we can say also good things, and particularly with regard 

 to Mr Sutherland, whom we have with us to-day, and from whom 

 we have on many occasions received most valuable assistance. 

 I may mention one thing which has not possibly been very much 

 published abroad. In spite of the discouragement which 

 sometimes comes to him, he has been persistent in giving 

 us his help, for instance with regard to the recovery of 

 potash salts from tree refuse, and things of that kind. All 

 these things are most useful, and we acknowledge his help, 

 and we feel sure that we shall get the same generous 

 help in the future as in the past. No one can pass over, on an 

 occasion like this, the great event which took place during the 

 past year — the celebration of the Society's Diamond Jubilee. 



