182 president's address. 



After lunching at Seaton Sluice, St. Mary's Island was soon 

 reached. There a formal meeting was held, new members elected, 

 and a most interesting paper read on Spiders, by the Rev. J. E. 

 Hull, of North Shields, who is busy with a new Catalogue of 

 Durham and ^Northumberland Spiders (since completed), and 

 published in our Transactions, vol. xiii. Even then forty-seven 

 new to our two counties had been found, and two entirely new 

 to science, which are being named, and shortly will be properly 

 described. 



A vote of thanks, tea, and then a rush for the train at Whitley, 

 and the year's rambles were over. It only remained to separate 

 with mutual good wishes for next year's Jubilee meetings. 



In concluding my address, let me say I rejoice to feel that 

 our Society has been able to earn, during my Presidentship, the 

 gratitude of the Black-headed Gulls ; for when the Newcastle 

 and Gateshead Water Company found themselves, for sanitary 

 reasons, compelled to stop the breeding of the Black-headed 

 Gulls on the islands in their reservoir at Hallington, they courte- 

 ously agreed, in response to a letter from me, to receive a depu- 

 tation from our Society, and gave such assurance that they would 

 show every consideration possible to the birds, consistent with the 

 maintenance of a supply of pure water, that I felt sure the gulls 

 were not in hostile, but in kindly and sympathetic hands. And 

 so it has proved, for the colony has not been destroyed, but has 

 only had to move its quarters, and is still in the neighbourhood. 



And now, ladies and gentlemen, it only remains to me to 

 render my most hearty thanks for the distinguished honour you 

 have done me by a second time electing me your President. 

 Conscious of my short-comings, I have the satisfaction of feeling 

 that I have not only done my best to make the year's meetings 

 pleasant and profitable, but that you also have abundantly shown 

 that those efforts, however imperfect, have not been wholly 

 unsuccessful. 



