16 president's address. 



During the winter, classes have been established by Mr. 

 Crowther, which have been carried on most successfully in the 

 rooms of the Institution, with the approval of the Council. The 

 subjects taken were botany, geology, mineralogy, and hygiene. 

 The Council would be willing to give their countenance to a 

 further development in this direction. 



Parts 36 and 37, forming Vol. X, of the Journal, have both 

 been issued since the last spring meeting. I must congratulate 

 the members on the publication of this important volume. The 

 subject matter contained in it may favourably be compared with 

 that in former volumes, or in the " Proceedings " of most of the 

 London Societies. This general excellence of the papers may 

 be partly due to the effect of the late award of the Henwood 

 Gold Medal, and partly to a growing interest in science, and in 

 the progress of the Institution. Perhaps without the prospect 

 of an early award, we might not have had some of those 

 important memoirs which have assisted in giving a high character 

 to the volume ; but there are many other contributions, not 

 included in the terms of the award, which are also of great local 

 interest. Without entering into any detailed analysis of the 

 separate papers— for I have no doubt you have already done 

 this for yourselves — I cannot refrain from making a special 

 reference to the memoirs of Mr. A. G-. Langdon and the Eev. 

 W. lago, and more briefly to one or two others. It gives me 

 much pleasure in stating, and I do so without any hesitation, 

 that, in my opinion, Mr. Langdon's memoir on "The Ornament 

 on the Early Crosses of Cornwall," is a most valuable contribu- 

 tion to Cornish archaeology, not only for its originality, but also 

 for the careful classification of the various patterns inscribed on 

 crosses distributed over the county. The subject as treated by 

 Mr. Langdon possesses a charm which makes the paper exceed- 

 ingly readable and attractive ; while it is clear that its preparation 

 must have cost the author much original research and personal 

 application. The memoir on " Some Recent Archaeological 

 Discoveries in Cornwall," by the Pev. W. lago, is also one of 

 high merit, showing, as we might expect, the author's acquaint- 

 ance with Cornish archaeology, which probably can hardly be 

 equalled at the present time. It embodies much new and 

 valuable information, and exhibits originality and depth of 



