i873- 

 Jan. 22nd. — " A Notice of Flint Jack and his Works," by Mr. William Gray- 

 ,, — " Irish Antiquities and Modern Forgeries," by Mr. William J. 



Knowles. 

 Feb. I2th. — "Family Names as indicating the distribution of Races in 



Ireland," by Rev. Edmund M'Clure. 

 Mar. 12th. — "Darwinism," by Mr. Robert Smith. 

 1 



The special efforts now being made to open up the mineral re- 

 sources of the north of Ireland — particularly the iron ores of the 

 Trappean areas— have tended in no small degree to direct public 

 attention to the operations of the Club, whose members have been 

 foremost in describing, with scientific accuracy, the nature and 

 extent of the deposits. 



During the past year, when the coal question became so absorbing, 

 and loose opinions were expressed about the occurence of coal in the 

 north, the Naturalists' Field Club was fairly represented in the 

 discussion, and furnished, from the actual observation of its mem- 

 bers, such an account of the geological structure of this locality, 

 with the position and extent of its beds of fossil fuel, as might be 

 depended upon by those who are anxious to develop the mineral 

 resources of the country, and who could not rely on the hasty and 

 too often erroneous predictions of interested mining speculators. 



The Sub-Committee appointed at the last Annual Meeting to 

 co-operate with the Rev. James Graves, Secretary of the Royal 

 Historical and Archaeological Society of Ireland, in furthering the 

 Bill of Sir John Lubbock, with reference to the preservation of our 

 National Monuments, have endeavoured to carry out their instruc- 

 tions, and with that view prepared a Memorial to the First Lord of 

 the Treasury, requesting that the provisions of the Irish Church 

 Act for that purpose should be carried out. The Sub-Committee 

 obtained over 300 signatures of the leading citizens to this Memo- 

 rial, and had the satisfaction of forwarding it through a distinguished 

 member of the Club, Thomas M'Clure, Esq., M.P. for Belfast. 



Your Committee have been most anxious to encourage, as far as 

 possible, the competition for the prizes offered by the Club for the 

 best collections made during the year, and, with this view, revised 



