PROCEEDINGS OF THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. 



consequence, our facilities for affording the student of any special 

 branch of knowledge an acquaintance with what the rest of the 

 world is doing in it, are much improved. It may also be stated, 

 that arrangements have been made whereby it is expected that a fuller 

 and more regular printed report of our proceedings will be given to 

 our members. 



It seems to me that it would be inappropriate not to say a word on 

 this occasion about the results that have flowed from a proposal made 

 by Mr Sandford Fleming in a communication read before the Institute 

 two or three years ago. I refer to the proposal to adopt certain 

 meridians as standards of time — a proposal which is to take practical 

 effect during the present month over a great part of this continent. 

 The members of the Institute, seeing that they have in their corpo- 

 rate capacity twice memoralized the government, and taken other 

 action in this matter, and in their separate capacities have seconded 

 Mr. Fleming whenever they have had opportunity to do so, cannot 

 but feel pleased that so much has been accomplished ; and while I 

 give utterance to that feeling of pleasure, I am sure that I am also 

 speaking the mind of the Institute, when I express the hope, that 

 this partial adoption of Mr. Fleming's scheme on this continent, may 

 be but the prelude to its adoption in its entirety throughout the 

 world. 



Some years ago I had the honour to communicate to the Institute 

 the general views at which I had then arrived in regard to the very 

 difficult subject of the relations of complexion and climate. Though 

 I cannot pretend that the partial solution which I then offered, was, 

 even as far as it went, entirely satisfactory, I still think that it em- 

 bodied an element of truth. Since that time, I have gained, if not 

 increased light, at least additional information, and it has occurred to 

 me that a new paper on the subject, written, not so much with the 

 object of advancing any special views which I may hold, as with that 

 of pointing out the nature of the difficulties which crop up when one 

 attempts to elucidate it, and the character of the questions, with the 

 solution of which its elucidation is connected, might prove to be of 

 some popular interest. 



This topic belongs to the domain of Anthropology, a science which 

 has lately come into existence. The anthropologist might take for 

 his motto that oft-quoted line of Pope's 



" The proper study of mankind is man," 



