256 REPORT OF THE COUNCIL 



dance. With a few exceptions the lectures and " talks " have 

 also been well attended. The average attendance at the 

 lectures given at the ordinary evening meetings was 71, at 

 the children's lectures 147, and at the Curator's "museum 

 talks" 60. The field meetings of the summer months have 

 been carried out with the usual measure of success. The 

 Council, on behalf of the Society, wish here to record their 

 thanks to those who prepared and delivered the lectures for 

 their kind and much valued services. 



This year has brought an extension of the use of the 

 Museum upon lines which have been contemplated for some 

 time by some of the members of the Council and officers of 

 the Society. By an arrangement with the Newcastle Educa- 

 tion Committee, certain classes in the elementary schools are 

 now visiting the Museum on one afternoon in the week, and 

 are being given a course of six lessons dealing chiefly with 

 the vertebrate fauna of Britain — mammals, birds, reptiles, 

 amphibians and fishes. The lessons were planned out in the 

 first instance by the Curator, and were then rehearsed by him 

 with the teachers who were to take the actual classes. So far 

 as can be judged up to the present the experiment has been a 

 very decided success. The classes have been conducted with 

 excellent discipline, and there has been every appearance of 

 keen interest among the children. In lieu of the entrance fees 

 of children and teachers the Education Committee is paying 

 the Natural History Society ^10 for the year. Apart from 

 the use of the collections by specialists, there is certainly no 

 better purpose to which they could be put than that of 

 interesting school children in natural history. 



A further pleasing evidence that the educational value of 

 ihe Museum is appreciated is that afforded by a recent 

 resolution of the Council of Armstrong College, voting an 

 annual subscription of ^5 to the Natural History Society in 

 recognition of its work in this and other directions. 



The Museum building has not required any extensive 

 repairs in the course of the year, but some costly alterations 



