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SLIGO. 



Irish Field Club Union Conference. 



July is looked forward to by the members of the Belfast 

 Naturalists' Field Club, as the now general holiday occurring 

 in that month affords an admirable time for many of them to 

 participate in the popular " long excursion." This year 

 proved of exceptional interest, as for the Club's long excursion 

 it was decided to join with the field clubs of Dublin, Cork, 

 and Limerick in the Triennial Conference of the Irish Field 

 Club Union at Sligo ; and here a most successful meeting was 

 held from the 12th till the 18th July. An elaborate and 

 varied programme had been formulated by Mr. R. LI. 

 Praeger, M.R.I.A., Secretary of the I.F.C.U., which was fully 

 carried out, and to those who took part in the excursions, the 

 week will be long remembered as another instance of his well- 

 known powers of organisation and successful accomplishment. 

 Doubtless in an undertaking of this sort the weather plays an 

 important part, but at Sligo the elements proved most propi- 

 tious; for, while the members' friends in Belfast were sub- 

 jected to an exceptionally heavy rainfall on some of the days, 

 the excursionists only experienced one heavy shower during the 

 conference week. 



Thirty-five members and friends assembled at the G. N. 

 Railway Terminus in Belfast on the " Twelfth " morning, 

 and were conducted to the reserved through carriages pro- 

 vided for their accommodation. On arrival at Clones they 

 were joined by the Dublin contingent, and, by the kind- 

 ness of the S., L., and N. C. Railway Company, the party 

 was conveyed to Sligo without delay; the members thereby 

 arriving at their destination about two hours earlier than is 

 possible by the ordinary train service. At Sligo it was found 

 that the Cork and Limerick members had already arrived, 

 and shortly after, the luggage was distributed to all in the 

 rooms allotted to them in the various hotels. Brakes were 

 brought out to convey the party (now numbering upwards 

 of sixty) to Rosses Point, where the afternoon was to be spent. 



