8 THE ROYAL SOCIETY 



through the pre-eminent influence of the men of the Royal Society 

 in the field of Natural Science, that we believe that Reason, as 

 the noblest gift of God to man, will assert its unfailing and bene- 

 ficent sway, never ceasing to be touched with the passionate search 

 for the secrets of truth and ever fired with the love of our fellow 

 creatures, and animated with the generous hope of benefiting them 

 through the application of scientific discovery. Magna cst veritas, 

 et praevalet.' 



In the afternoon at 2.30 the formal Reception of the Delegates 

 took place in the Great Library of the Royal Society, which was 

 completely filled. The Delegates w r ere grouped according to the 

 countries they represented, these countries being taken in alpha- 

 betical order. After the visitors had been marshalled to the seats 

 reserved for each country the proceedings began with an address 

 from the President, Sir Archibald Geikie, who spoke as follows : 



ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT. 



' On behalf of the Royal Society, I desire to express our warm 

 appreciation of the sympathetic response which has been made by 

 so many Universities, Academies, and learned Institutions in all 

 parts of the world, and by so many distinguished men of science, 

 to our invitation to celebrate with us on this occasion the 250th 

 birthday of the Society. No more striking proof than is presented 

 by this assembly could be given of the reality and cordiality of 

 that spirit of frank and loyal co-operation which unites into one 

 great brotherhood the students of science in every land and in 

 every language. We welcome you, Gentlemen, with our whole 

 heart. We appreciate most sincerely the honour which has been 

 conferred on the Royal Society by your presence here to-day. We 

 greet the Delegates who bring to us the felicitations of some of 

 the oldest centres of culture in Europe, which had become famous 

 some centuries before our own Society was born. Not less fully 

 do we rejoice to meet the Delegates from the younger Institutions 

 in our own and other lands, who have come from British dominions 

 beyond the seas, from furthest Asia and Africa, and in such numbers 

 from the Great Republic across the Atlantic where the lamp of 

 science now burns with so bright a radiance and in so many 



