THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 19 



Our past year has been one of steady work. The papers read 

 have, I think, been of greater interest, and evidenced more of 

 independent research than in any former year. These have 

 been published in our journal, and where all have been so 

 good it would be, perhaps, invidious to mention any. In 

 looking to the future, however, we find that Mr. Wintle 

 promises a series of papers on the geology of Melbourne and 

 its suburbs, and Mr. French on insects injurious to vegetation ; 

 these are sure to be both interesting and instructive. 



Our excursions have been pleasant to all and profitable to 

 many who have attended them. Your journal, increased to i6 

 pages under the able editorship of Mr. Lucas, has distributed 

 our gathered knowledge far beyond the confines of our club. 

 Useful as our journal has been not only to the members of our 

 club, but to many outside our ranks, we all feel that it could 

 be made much more useful did our means permit. Many of 

 the papers need the aid of illustrations, and that we may be 

 able to do this we have sought from the Government a modest 

 annual grant, and, in return, are prepared to distribute copies of 

 our journal to all public libraries and mechanics' institutions 

 throughout the colony. If we are enabled to do this, I think 

 ■that nothing will be more likely to attract that attention to the 

 ■study of natural science so much desired. That an interest is 

 ■excited on the questions we study is shown in many ways. 

 The trouble worked by insect plagues has caused those con- 

 cerned to ask that a Government entomologist may be employed 

 whose duty it shall be to investigate the life history of 

 ■these troubles and pests, and, if it be possible, to devise 

 remedies. Meanwhile the papers published in our journal, 

 if illustrated, would help very much in this direction. As 

 priests, not of the old science, that was ever veiled, but 

 -of the new, on which the beautiful light ever plays, we 

 desire that what little knowledge we have gained should be 

 not a feast to ourselves only, but distributed as widely and as 

 freely as possible. 



Another evidence of this growing interest is shown by the 

 fact that, though it is only about a year ago that Baron von 

 Mueller's new and enlarged edition of " Select Plants for Indus- 

 trial Culture and Naturalisation " was published, with the excep- . 

 tion of some copies sent to the Colonial and Indian Exhibition, 

 the whole issue has found a ready sale at the Government 

 Printing Office. 



Doubtless, when the Dichotomous key to the plants of 

 Victoria is published, it will find, too, a ready sale. At our last 

 annual gathering I mentioned that that day I had received the 

 first part, and it was hoped that before long the whole work 



