404 Proceedings. 



Second Meeting. 2Qth July, 1872. 



Dr. Hector, F.R.S., President, in the chair. 



New inemhers. — Commander R. A. Edwin, E..]Sr., C. J. Harrison, J. 

 Carruthers, C.E., Alfred Dobson, C.E., George Park, Hon. Capt. Eraser, 

 E.R.G.S., C. J. Nairn. 



Publications received since last meeting were laid on the table. 



1. " Preliminary Notes on Mr. H. H. Travers' Recent Collections of 

 Plants from the Chatham Islands," by Baron Eerd. von Mueller, C.M.G., 

 M.D., E.R.S., Hon. Mem. N.Z. Inst. (See Transactions, p. 309.) 



The author considers that we have now an almost complete knowledge of 

 the flora of these islands. 



Mr. W. T. L. Travers stated that, besides the botanical collection, his son 

 had made large ethnolo^^ical and zoological collections, and that the results of 

 his exjDedition would be brought before the Society during this season. He 

 believed they would throw much light on the habits of the Moriori race. 



The President said he had been fortunate enough to secure Mr. Travers' 

 collections for the Colonial Museum, and that they would be valuable for 

 exchanges with European museums. He was glad to find that the botanical 

 collections were so highly appreciated, and he trusted that they would enable 

 botanists to make accurate deductions respecting the geographic range of the 

 species found there, as Baron von Mueller is to communicate a complete essay 

 on the plants to the Society. 



Mr. Travers explained that the reason why the collection had not been 

 intrusted to Mr. Kirk, of Auckland, for description was, that the collection of 

 a former expedition, the expense of which was borne by himself, was described 

 by Baron von Mueller, and published at the cost of the Victorian Government. 



2. "Notes on some of the New Zealand Birds," by James Morton, com- 

 municated by Captain Hutton. (See Transactions, p. 225.) 



Captain Hutton stated he did not agree with some portions of the author's 

 observations. However, if the description given of a blue crane with a dorsal 

 crest is correct, it must apply to a species that has not yet been described. 



3. The following natural history notes by W. BuUer, Sc. D., E.L.S., E.G.S., 

 were read. Remarking on Capt. Hutton's paper on " The Lizards of New 

 Zealand,"* the author stated : — 



" Naultinus elegans. 



"Captain Hutton remarks (p. 171), "The figure of N. elegans in tbe 

 Transactions of the New Zealand Institute, III., p. 4, is not that species, 

 but N. punctatus^ 



*See Trans. N.Z. Inst., Vol. IV., p. 167. 



