Inaugural Address. 479 



Ijs'augural Address of the President of the 



ISTatural History Society of Montreal, 



October, 1901. 



I feel myself doubly honoured to-night, not only 

 on acount of the high office to which this ancient 

 society has thought fit to elect me, but also by the 

 presence of such a distinguished company, including 

 the High Commissioner, who may be said to be the 

 ambassador of Canada to the Imperial throne. 



I feel it a heavy responsibility to undertake to 

 address such an audience, and, therefore, I have 

 avoided as the subject of this address any technical 

 subject, and have chosen rather to say a few words to 

 you on the value of the study of l^atural History in 

 general and the aims which in particular the Montreal 

 Society sets before itself. We Canadians are above 

 all a practical people and our tasks in the immediate 

 future lie not so much in attempts to solve the riddle 

 of existence, which as a rule we are content to leave 

 to the members of older civilizations, as in the 

 development and utilization of the vast natural 

 resources which Providence has bestowed upon us, 

 and in the building up of a strong, healthy national 

 life. If the study of ISTatural History is to be 

 regarded as anything better than a hobby, such as, 

 for instance, stamp collecting, it must be shown to 

 have riome relation to the objects which, I venture to 

 think, are in the minds of most Canadians of imme- 



