472 REPORT OF THE COUNCIL. 



In spite of one or two small audiences, the average 

 attendance at these lectures was 85, a result which must be 

 considered decidedly encouraging. At the curator's evening 

 " museum talks," of which as usual seven were given during 

 the winter, the attendance was also somewhat irregular, but 

 the average works out to a little over 50, or rather more than 

 the average of the last two or three years. These figures, 

 taken in conjunction with the interest displayed on the various 

 occasions, show that this branch of the Society's work is 

 meeting with success, and that it is worth an effort to keep 

 up the standard that has been attained. The thanks of the 

 Society have been expressed towards the lecturers at each 

 meeting, but the Council feel that such a great service should 

 be publicly acknowledged in the report. It should also 

 be mentioned here that in the unavoidable absence of the 

 curator, one of the " museum talks " was kindly undertaken 

 by Mr. Richard Adamson, of Winlaton. It would assist the 

 curator in keeping up the interest and variety of the "talks" 

 if other members would occasionally volunteer to share this 

 work, 



A series of Field Meetings, to some extent taking the place 

 in summer of the winter evening meetings, has been arranged 

 as usual by a sub-committee. At the time of writing there 

 are still two of the meetings to be held, and the report 

 presented later by the chairman of the section makes it un- 

 necessary to say much here about the summer's work in this 

 department. Your Council are, however, glad to know that 

 the gradual improvement in the numbers attending the Field 

 Meetings — an improvement of which there has been some 

 sign in the last year or two — has this year been still more 

 evident. 



During the year an important volume of the Transactions 

 has been issued, the work on " Durham Diptera," by the 

 Rev. W. J. Wingate, forming Volume II. of the new series. 

 As a number of reviewers have pointed out, tlie title of this 

 work errs somewhat on the side of modesty. It is not only a 

 catalogue of local flies : with its introductory chapters and 



