BRITISH ASSOCIATION.—THE PRESIDENTS ADDRESS. 65 
had to come far, but in approaching the Highlands of Seotland they meet nature in 
its wild and primitive form, and nature is the object of their studies, The geolo- 
gist will not find many novelties in yonder mountains, because he will stand there 
on the bare backbone of the globe, but the primary rocks which stand out in their 
nakedness, exhibit the grandeur and beauty of their peculiar form, and in the splen- 
did quarries of this neighbourhood are seen to peculiar advantage the closeness and 
hardness of their mass, and their inexhaustible supply for the use of man, made 
available by the application of new mechanical powers. On this primitive soil the 
botanist and zoologist will be attracted only by a limited range of plants and 
animals, but they are the very species which the extension of agriculture and 
increase of population are gradually driving out of many parts of the country. 
On those blue hills the red deer, in vast herds, holds undisturbed dominion over 
the wide heathery forest, until the sportsman, fatigued and unstrung by the busy 
life of the bustling town, invades the moor, to regain health and vigonr by measur- 
ing his strength with that of the antlered monarch of the hill. But, notwithstanding 
all his efforts to overcome an antagonist possessed of such superiority of power, 
“swiftness, caution, and keenness of all the senses, the sportsman would find himself 
baffled, had not science supplied him with the telescope, and those terrible wea- 
pons which seem daily to progress in the precision with which they carry the dead- 
ly bullet, mocking distance, to the mark. 
Tn return for the help which scienee has afforded him, the sportsman can supply 
the naturalist with many facts which he alone has opportunity of observing, and 
which may assist the solution of some interesting problems suggested by the life 
of the deer. Man also, the highest object of our study, is found in vigorous 
healthy developement, presenting a happy mixture of the Celt, Goth, Saxon, and 
Dane, acquiring his strength on the hills. on the sea. The Aberdeen whaler braves 
the icy regions of the Polar Sea, to seek and do battle with the great monster of 
the deep: he has materially assisted in opening these icebound regions to the 
researches of Science; he fearlessly aided in the search after Sir John Franklin 
and his gallant companions, whom their country sent forth on this mission, but to 
whom Providence, alas! has denied the reward of their labours, the return to their 
homes, to the affectionate embrace of their families and friends, and the acknow- 
ledgments of a grateful nation. The City of Aberdeen itself is rich in interest 
for the philosopher. Its two lately united Universities make it a seat, of Learning 
and Science. The Collection of Antiquities, formed for the present occasion, 
enables him to dive into olden times, and, by contact with the remains of the handi- 
work of the ancient inhabitants of Scotland, to enter into the spirit of that peculiar 
and interesting people, which has attracted the attention and touched the hearts of 
men accessible to the influence of heroic poetry. The Spalding Club, founded in 
this city for the preservation of the historical and literary remains of the north- 
eastern counties of Scotland, is honourably known by its important publications, 
Gentlemen !—This is the 29th Aniversary of the foundation of this Association ; 
and well may we look back with satisfaction to its operation and achievements, 
throughout the time of its existence. When, on the 27th September, 1831, the 
Meeting of the Yorkshire Philosophical Society took place at York, in the theatre 
of the Yorkshire Museum, under the presidency of the late Earl Fitzwilliam, then 
Vou. V. F 
