TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 127 



Mr. Dillwyn, so beautifully commenced a few years since, and illustrating a Fauna 

 little known, has not been continued, and will, I much regret, cease to be so under its 

 original authors; for, in the fearful massacre that took place at Kalangan on the 1st 

 of May last, Mr. Motley and his family were the first to fall victims to the rage of 

 the natives. This unhappy loss will be a serious one for science. Mr. Motley 

 laboured hard in our particular walks ; but being chief engineer of the coal-mines in 

 the eastern division of Borneo, he had turned his mind to geology, and at the time of 

 his death was preparing a paper for this very Meeting upon the coal of those 

 countries, and upon 'The Progress and Growth of New Coal Formations now pre- 

 paring for Future Ages.' It may be recollected that among the grants of money 

 appropriated at our last Meeting to Section D, there was one to assist Mr. Eyton to 

 illustrate the comparative osteology of birds, to which subject he has particularly 

 directed his attention. Two beautiful numbers have already appeared, and the 

 third is ready for publication. The periodicals devoted to zoology and botany con- 

 tinue to be well conducted. In these and in the Transactions of Learned Societies, 

 much facility and encouragement are given to the publication of valuable memoirs ; 

 and I may mention that in one branch which has not yet maintained a periodical for 

 itself, an experiment is being tried in Mr. Sclater's ' Ibis,' of which the first year's 

 numbers will be completed in October. In Ireland, the Rev. C. O'Meara's works 

 on ' The Reproduction of the Diatomacea? ' hold a first place. Mr. Archer's papers 

 ' On the Desmidieae ' are also able. In Zoology, marine life has been most advanced 

 by Dr. Kinahan, Profs. Green and W. King ; while in the Dublin University a lec- 

 tureship in zoology has been founded, and shows its value by being well attended. 

 The importance of Publishing Societies has been generally acknowledged. Many of 

 us are members of the Ray Society, devoted to furthering the objects of our Section; 

 and it gives me pleasure to lay before you Prof. Huxley's beautiful volume on 

 'Oceanic Hydrozoa,' observed during the voyage of H.M.S. 'Rattlesnake/ now 

 ready for subscribers ; and also the drawings and plates of Mr. Blackwall's volume 

 on ' Spiders,' also far advanced. The members of our Learned Societies have occa- 

 sionally founded medals or prizes for the encouragement of men of science. You 

 will see presented to Sir R. Murchison during this Meeting the medal founded by 

 Sir T. Brisbane, President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh ; and the late Dr. 

 Patrick Neil founded another medal, which has been this year awarded to a botanical 

 work of rare excellence, and beautifully illustrated, ' The Reproductive Organs of 

 Lichens,' by Dr. J. Lindsay. 



The condition of our Public Museums is a very important subject. The discus- 

 sions upon the accommodation in our noble national collections, and of the propriety 

 of the separation of the Literary and Art Departments from the Physical will, I have 

 no doubt, bring out results favourable to both. Every facility for study, as far as 

 circumstauces will permit, is already given by the courtesy and attention of the 

 officers ; but there is nevertheless a want of ioom and of suitable accommodations 

 to enable naturalists to compare specimens and solve questions, which their own or 

 other limited collections do not afford the means of doing. One great and important 

 feature is the arrangement and cataloguing of these collections. The officers of the 

 British Museum have worked hard in these departments, and its Catalogues now 

 reach to a numerous and valuable series of volumes. Some of these are well illus- 

 trated, while others are almost monographs. This year Dr. Gray has devoted one 

 to a portion of the Batrachians or Frogs, and Mr. F. Smith has published a capital 

 part ' On the Fossorial Hymenoptera.' The University Museum of Edinburgh is 

 one of great value, and besides possessing the rich mineralogical collection made by 

 its late able Professor, Jameson, it gained by purchase the entire zoological collection 

 of the late M. Dufresne of Paris, in which are many of the type-specimens men- 

 tioned and described in the zoological works published at the end of the last and 

 beginning of the present century. The formation of a Museum of Technology under 

 Prof. George Wilson will, I trust, improve the condition of this part of the Univer- 

 sity, but at present the accommodation and income allowed for museum purposes 

 are not nearly sufficient, and it is impossible for the Regius Keeper to catalogue or 

 arrange or even preserve the collection, or to give that aid to study required at the 

 present time, without considerable additions to his staff of assistants. Among the 

 more local collections, the East India Company has set a fine example by publishing 



