president's address. 279 



ADDRESS TO THE MEMBERS OF THE TYNESIDE 

 NATURALISTS' FIELD CLUB, 



READ BY THE PRESIDENT, GEORGE STEWARDSON BRADY, ESQ., C.M.Z.S., 

 AT THE TWENTY-FIFTH ANNIVERSARY MEETING, HELD IN THE MU- 

 SEUM OF THE NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, 

 ON THURSDAY, MARCH 16th, 1871. 



Gentlemen, — At the close of my year of office as your President, 

 I appear before you painfully conscious of the many imperfec- 

 tions on my head. It is indeed no small honour, considering 

 the position which the Tyneside Naturalists' Field Club now 

 holds in the estimation both of English and foreign naturalists, 

 to be elected to its presidential chair. For this honour my most 

 hearty thanks are due to you, and also much apology for the 

 imperfect manner in which I have fulfilled the duties of the office. 

 Knowing that my own professional avocations might very pro- 

 bably interfere (as unfortunately they have much interfered) 

 with my regular attendance at the Field Meetings, it was with 

 considerable misgiving that I accepted the nomination of the 

 Committee : I can now only express the trust that not much 

 inconvenience or detriment to the Club has arisen from these, 

 on my part most unwilling, lapses. Thus much of egotism and 

 apology was due to you and to myself. We will now go on to 

 our usual review of the year's proceedings. 



The First Field Meeting of the Season was held at Hartford 

 Bridge, on the 26th of May. The party numbered about one 

 hundred, amongst whom were several ladies. A long winter, 

 followed by a cold and unsettled spring, had only just previously 

 given way to more genial weather, and the warm and brilliant af- 

 ternoon tempted together a more than usually numerous company, 

 who most thoroughly enjoyed their excursion. A short walk 

 from the Plessey Station, partly along the high road and partly 

 through the fields, brought the party to the beautifully wooded 

 banks of the river Blyth, and after arranging on the bridge the 

 order of the afternoon's proceedings, they proceeded at once to 

 the beautiful grounds surrounding Hartford Hall, through which, 



