8) 
THE PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS 
AT THE FIRST ANNIVERSARY MEETING OF THE SOCIETY. 
GENTLEMEN,—When our Naturalists’ Field Club was set on 
foot, in April last, we had felt ourselves stimulated, and were 
also happily directed, by the example of a body of gentlemen in 
Berwickshire, and on our side of the Tweed, who had been asso- 
ciated during several years for the purpose of searching into the 
natural productions of that district. Not only had their pro- 
ceedings been successful in adding new plants to the phytology, 
and new animals to the fauna, of Berwickshire, and even of 
Great Britain itself, but they had struck out a mode of carrying 
forward their researches, which made the means as delightful as 
the end. The object being to cultivate, diffuse, and advance the 
knowledge of the works of the Creator within the limits of a 
certain tract of country easily accessible, the means chosen were 
long and pleasant rambles on foot during fine days in the sum- 
mer half-year, and in society capable of affording mutual instruc- 
tion. They did not indeed forget to eat a hearty breakfast, 
before leaving the village inn where they might happen to meet, 
nor to dine together at the end of the day ; but being very hun- 
gry, and having often a good distance to go ere reaching home, 
they made short work of the repast. There was neither time nor 
inclination to permit their active and instructive meetings ‘to 
degenerate into dinner-traps, after the too common custom of 
this good country of ours. By these means men were brought 
together from town and country, as many as were really inter- 
ested in some branch of natural science or in. the study of anti- 
quities, and no others came. The Society has, consequently, 
split upon no rock, but has gone on and prospered. Long may 
it do so, for the materials to be examined and re-examined can 
never come toanend. One and the same locality needs not to 
be revisited for long at the same season, unless by design for the 
sake of comparing different years and different kinds of weather, 
