SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



FIELD MEETINGS. 



By Professor G. S. Boulger, F.L.S., F.G.S. 



T7IELD-WORK is one of the chief objects of 

 local Natural History Societies, so far as it 

 results in the registration of distributional or 

 phenological phenomena, or in the observation of 

 plants and animals under their natural conditions. 

 For such field-work to be of scientific value, it is 

 primarily requisite that it should be within 

 definitely prescribed geographical limits. Every 

 field club should, I think, have a precise boundary, 

 whether that of a river basin, a county, a par- 

 liamentary division, a parish, or some radius from 

 a centre. County associations may well, of course, 

 overlap the districts of various minor clubs, and I 

 think it would be well for the latter to work 

 without regard to school clubs, which will 

 generally do well to adopt a radius. 



In collecting fossils, where precise discrimination 

 of zones may not be necessary — in getting together 

 fungi for subsequent determination, study or 

 demonstration, in a foray, and perhaps in some 

 other cases, the combined research of many pairs 

 of eyes may lead to better results than that of 

 small select parties or solitary work ; but it can 

 hardly be denied that the main use of field 

 meetings is educational or demonstrational rather 

 than original discovery. 



The successful organisation of a full and 

 valuable series of field meetings involves a con- 

 siderable amount of attention to troublesome 

 detail. This is more especially the case if the club 

 attempt to cater for lunches or teas. For my part 

 I certainly think that such joint meals add much to 

 the success of field meetings, most people liking to 

 be saved all trouble as to securing some food, as 

 also that of hiring conveyances, and even, if 

 possible, that of taking railway-tickets, by some 

 simple system of coupons, a lump payment, or, at 

 least, an order, in advance. It will, therefore, be 

 generally desirable, if he can be got, to have a 

 special excursion secretary, with a consultative 

 committee, or otherwise an excursion committee, 

 the members of which will each undertake the 

 management of one or more excursions. Such a 

 committee should meet in the winter, so as to plan 

 a season's programme well in advance. Most 

 clubs begin their excursions, I think, too late and 

 end them too early in the year, often practically 

 confining them to May, June and July, whereas an 

 early spring ramble and an autumn fungus-foray 

 might well, in my opinion, be included in every 

 scheme. 



To meet the convenience of members living in 

 different parts of its district, the club excursions 

 should be arranged as far as possible in divers 



directions, and I would suggest that the officials of 

 all the neighbouring clubs should be consulted, 

 and, if possible, a joint meeting held with each in 

 its territory and another within the boundaries of 

 the club itself. In the case of such joint meetings, 

 the main arrangements would naturally be made 

 by the home club. 



Where there is a river, an estuary, or a portion 

 of coast within a club's boundary, at least one 

 dredging expedition should be attempted annually. 

 It will, I think, often prove useful to have a local 

 guide who is well acquainted with footpaths, etc., 

 in addition to the " conductors " who are responsi- 

 ble for the purely scientific guidance of a party, 

 though, of course, if the guide knows the localities 

 of interesting natural history objects, so much the 

 better. It is, I think, often a good plan to have 

 several "conductors" for different branches of 

 natural history ; and a short lecture in the field or 

 several at different halts, if illustrative of things 

 seen during the walk, will add much to its 

 value ; but the enthusiastic amateur photographer 

 should not be allowed to waste much time, and 

 bore the party, by taking mere "groups." These 

 field demonstrations may usefully be arranged in a 

 series, a botanist, for instance, taking the various 

 classes or natural orders of plants ; at successive 

 excursions, and with a little forethought, adequate 

 illustrative specimens can nearly always be 

 obtained. I have generally found that if a locality 

 is chosen for its geological or archaeological interest, 

 the botanist and entomologist are almost sure to 

 light upon something by the way, interesting to 

 them. Certainly the secretary or some other 

 conductor should have a whistle to keep the party 

 together. We should, I think, do well to have 

 separate "recorders" for different departments, 

 one carrying the club vasculum for the club 

 herbarium, another the camera for the club album 

 of scientific photographs, etc., and from their 

 records a terse account of the noteworthy results 

 of each excursion may readily be drawn up 

 either by the secretary or any other member 

 present for the club proceedings. The most 

 interesting work of a field meeting must be done 

 on foot, but it will often be practicable to arrange 

 a rendezvous for those driving or cycling. 



In vehicles, meals, etc., it is always desirable to 

 keep the generally necessary expenses as low as 

 possible, so as to exclude no one, whilst anyone 

 wanting more can make his own arrangements. 



* A paper read before the South-Eastern Union of Scientific 

 Societies, at the Congress held at Tunbridge Wells, on April 

 25th, 1896. 



