NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. 227 



cess. The tendency of such social reunions must necessarily be 

 beneficial to the Society ; opportunity being afforded for general 

 participation in the discussion of subjects connected with 

 natural science. 



Botanic Garden. 



Your Council deemed it proper to appoint a committee* to 

 co-operate with the Montreal Agri-Horticultural Society for the 

 purpose of establishing a Botanic Garden in this city, if possible 

 in the grounds of the McGill College. Your Council are happy 

 to state that the project has been most favourably received by the 

 public ; and the governors of McGill University having, in the 

 same spirit of liberality which led them to present gratuitously 

 the site of the Society's present building, offered their grounds at 

 a nominal rent for the purposes of the garden, your Council 

 trust that so important an auxiliary to this Society may soon be 

 established. 



Miscellaneous. 



Your Council are happy to announce a continued increase in 

 the number of members. During the month of July his Excel- 

 lency the Governor General visited the Museum, when an address 

 was presented to him requesting him to become a patron of the 

 Society. His Excellency was pleased to assent and to express great 

 gratification with the appearance of the Museum. The number 

 of additional ordinary members has been forty-eight, correspond- 

 ing members nine, and life members two, in all fifty-nine. Your 

 Council believe fully one half of these resulted from the favourable 

 impression made by the Society's Conversazione, and they know 

 that one other result was that a member liberally offered to com- 

 mence a list with the sum of $200, to pay off the remaining 

 indebtedness of the Society. In this connection also your coun- 

 cil deem it fitting to refer to the liberality of the Society's trea- 

 surer, James Ferrier, jun., Esq., who to save the payment of a 

 high rate of interest, has advanced a considerable sum of money 

 for the purpose of liquidating the Society's indebtedness. 

 The usual government grant was received — an earnest, your Coun- 

 cil trust, that the legislature will continue to appreciate the efforts 

 of the Society and enable them to bring together the means by 

 which scientific attainments can be acquired. As evincing their 

 own desire and that of the Society's to extend as widely as possible 



* The committee consisted of Rev. Dr. De Sola (Convener), Rev. A 

 F. Kemp, Messrs. S. C. Bagg, C. Robb, and John Leeming. 



