SEP 1 180O 



,i'f 



JOURNAL OF VARIATION. 



Vol. XII. No. 8. August 1st, 1900, 



Field Meeting of the South London Entomological and Natural 

 History Society, May. 1900 {mth plwto'jrapli). 



Some twenty-ei.q-ht years ago the South London Entomological and 

 Natnral History Society first came into existence, and the late Mr. 

 J. R. ^Yellman Vas, from 1872-1874, its first President. From 1872 

 until no"\v it has been a progressiye institution, full of life and yirility, 

 and much of its strength has undoubtedly been due to a well -organised 

 band of excellent entomologists, who, at weak periods, haye proyided 

 the sinews of war, and during strong ones haye placed its finances on 

 a sound basis, and nursed it until it has now undoubtedly become one 

 of the strongest societies of its kind in the country. When one looks 

 through its list of members one is not surprised at the success achieved, 

 and the list of past presidents contains the names of many men well- 

 known in the annals of entomological science. The way. in which old 

 members haye supported the society after their more actiye period of 

 work has been passed, is worthy of all praise, and only one past presi- 

 dent, Mr. A. B. Farn (1875-1876), is missing from the current roll of 

 membership, except those that have passed the bourne whence no 

 trayeller returns—J. R. Wellman, J. T. Williams, W. H. Tugwell, 

 and, dearest of all old friends, J. Jenner Weir. Mr. J. P. Barrett, 

 who has disappeared from actiye work for a score of years, appears in 

 the current roll of members as haying been elected in 1900, yet he was 

 Secretary of the Society in the '' seyenties," President in 1877, so that 

 he is at once one of the oldest and youngest of members. 



One of the features of the summer work of this Society is the 

 organisation of a series of field meetings. One of these was held at 

 Oxshott, on May 19th, and our photograph is reproduced from 

 one taken at the end of a pleasant day by that prince of photo- 

 graphers, Mr. F. Noad Clark, to Avhom we are greatly indebted for the 

 original. Seeing that the photograph included so many entomologists 

 with whose personal appearance our proyincial readers would be sm-e 

 to wish to be acquainted, we considered we could not do better than 

 have a reproduction made for the magazine. The " Carl Hentschel 

 Co." has done its share of the work satisfactorily, and we haye no 

 doubt the printer will do his. 



Of the members present many of the younger ones haye still to win 

 their spurs as entomologists in the strict sense, although their keen- 

 ness as collectors leaves little doubt that this will come in due course. 

 Of the older hands there are several to whom entomologists generally 



