INTRODUCTION. xi 



personal knowledge of the large extent to which that success was due 

 to their highly cultivated intelligence, their zeal, their resource, and 

 their ungrudging devotion of time, and, he feared he might say 

 health. He could only say that he was proud to serve the Queen in 

 his Department of the State, in concert with such officers. 



In conclusion, he must express his disappointment that his special 

 Parliamentry duties this Session would prevent his deriving that 

 advantage from the Loan Collection which he would have wished, 

 and would rob him of the power of profiting by the opportunity to 

 make the acquaintance of the many eminent men who would be 

 gathered together by this exhibition, in the preparation for which he 

 had from the first taken a warm personal interest. It only remained 

 for him now to bid a hearty welcome on the part of Her Majesty's 

 Government to the men of Science who were, and who would be 

 gathered in these galleries from all parts of the world, and to renew 

 the expression of the hope that when these Conferences have come to 

 an end, and when this collection is dispersed, it might be found that 

 no unimportant assistance had been given to those who were labour- 

 ing in the noble cause of scientific investigations. 



The Conferences were held on the following days : 

 Physics (including Astronomy), i6th, igth, and 24th May ; 

 Mechanics (including Pure and Applied Mathematics and Measure- 

 ment), i;th, 22nd, and 2$th May; Chemistry, i8th and 23rd May; 

 Biology, 26th and 2Qth May ; Physical Geography, Geology, 

 Mineralogy, and Meteorology, 3oth May, ist, and 2nd June. 



