8 ANNUAL MEETlNa 



The LoED Bishop of Dunedin. — I am honoured by being asked 

 to move the following resolution : — 



" That the Repoi't be received and the thanks of the members 

 and associates presented to the Council, honorary officers and 

 auditors, for their efficient conduct of the business of the Victoria 

 Institute during the past year." 



My task in moving this resolution is a very pleasant one, and 

 "when you note the "way in which the objects of this Institute 

 have been maintained, and that the important work which it has 

 taken in ha,nd, has been carried on successfully, as the first clauses 

 of the Report indicate, then, of course, it follows naturally that a 

 Report relating to such, success should be received by this meeting 

 and gladly received, and I think it also equally follows that if 

 sucli a desirable result as has crowned the splendid labours of its 

 President, Vice-President and Council, then those honorary officers 

 (and it is well for us to remember that they are honorary) are 

 •certainly worthy of your thanks. (Applause.) And I must say 

 that the Instittite derives much of its efficiency from the generous 

 und persevering and long-continued efforts of its Honorary Secre- 

 tary, Captain Petrie. (Applause.) It needs very few words of 

 mine to add to what you Avill find quoted in the Report — that " the 

 Institute meets a need felt both at home and abroad, especially in 

 our Colonies and India, where imperfect appi'eciation of the actual 

 results of philosophic and scientific inquiry has led many of the 

 less informed to credit such statements as that Science and 

 Philosophy are alike opposed to Revelation, or that the progress 

 of Science has given a death-blow to all belief in the truth of the 

 Bible." I am here to say, as representing one of those Colonies 

 alluded to in this Report, that to my mind it is of the utmost 

 inaportance that there should be a Society such as this, in which 

 the ability of those who come forward to dissipate these misap- 

 prehensions cannot be gainsaid or their knowledge disputed. 



I suppose the common idea in the mind of most people when 

 a contrast is made (and the contrast is too often made perhaj)s 

 between the position of the scientist and the i^osition of the 

 professor of religion), is that the scientist has that which is 



