108 Proceedings of the Royal Physical Society. 



I am still performing, in the hope, however, that ere long 

 some one better qualified for this post will come forward to 

 relieve me of its responsibilities. 



Before closing these remarks on the history of the Society, 

 there are three things to be specially noted in connection 

 therewith. 



The first is the extraordinary vitality of the Society, which 

 has enabled it, with but slender funds at its disposal, and in 

 a centre of population so comparatively small as that of 

 Edinburgh, to withstand more than one vicissitude of fortune 

 during a period of over one hundred and thirty years. 



The second is that it has not only been able to live, but to 

 absorb into itself other societies whose vitality was less than 

 its own. Thus we find that in 1782 it was joined by the 

 old " Medico -Chirurgical " Society; in 1796 by the "American 

 Physical" Society; in 1799 by the "Hibernian" Society; in 

 1802 by the "Chemical" Society; in 1812 by the "Natural 

 History" Society; in 1813 by the "Didactic." Finally the 

 Wernerian Society, which had fallen into a languishing state 

 after the death of Professor Jameson, was in 1858 incorpo- 

 rated with the Eoyal Physical, though to a certain extent 

 also partly with the Botanical Society of Edinburgh. As 

 Scottish men of Science we cannot help feeling a consider- 

 able degree of regret that so distinguished a Society as the 

 Wernerian, whose published Proceedings must be frequently 

 referred to by workers in Scottish Natural History, should 

 have been compelled to give up its individual existence. 

 But this regret must be tempered with the feeling that the 

 Koyal Physical Society is also the heir of the Wernerian, 

 and that it is incumbent on us to strive to keep up and 

 extend the reputation of that association, of which Eobert 

 Jameson was the President and moving spirit. 



The third is the number of distinguished men who have 

 been connected with the Society in the past. Of those who, 

 up to the close of their lives, took an active part in its work, 

 I need only mention John Fleming, Hugh Miller, and Thomas 

 Strethill Wright. But there were others who, in their earlier 

 years, were also active members of the Koyal Physical 

 Society, and whose names afterwards came to be known 



