278 president's address. 



Skerry Lighthouse on the night of the 5th September last, and 

 was forwarded in the flesh to Sir WiUiam Eagle Clarke of the 

 Edinburgh Museum by Mr. James Tomison, the keeper. 



This eastern species has only once previously been known 

 to occur in the British Isles, a female specimen having been 

 obtained on the 5th September, 1896, by Mr. Caton Haigh 

 on the north-east coast of Lincolnshire. The Scottish speci- 

 men is an unusually fine example, the wing measuring 

 2*6-in., and is in brilliant plumage, having just completed the 

 moult. The figure of this species in Lord Lilford's " Coloured 

 Illustrations" is not satisfactory. The figure in the supple- 

 ment to Mr. Dresser's "Birds of Europe" (plate 651, fig. I.) 

 is a little better, but the lower parts are too much washed with 

 green. Its eggs are, I believe, unknown. The specimen is 

 now in the collection at Edinburgh. 



I regret the severance of the joint arrangement, suggested 

 in the Committee of the Natural History Society, January 

 26th, 1864, adopted at the anniversary meeting of your Club, 

 March loth, 1864, and approved at a special general meeting 

 of the members of the Natural History Society, April 6th, 

 1864. The terms of this arrangement will be found recorded 

 in the Transactions of this Club for the years 1 863-1 864, 

 Volume VL, page 268, and in the joint Natural History 

 Transactions of the Club and the Society for the years 1890- 

 1894, Volume XL, page 181. Under this arrangement the 

 whole cost of the publication of the Transactions was in the 

 first place defrayed by the Field Club. The members of the 

 Field Club were numerous, their subscriptions were merely 

 nominal, though in the whole they amounted to a substantial 

 annual sum ; and as it was unnecessary for them to consider 

 monetary matters they took little interest in the income or 

 expenditure. In consequence, however, of the formation of 

 numerous other societies and clubs all over the district, your 

 members, and consequently your subscriptions, decreased ; 

 and then your attention was directed to a consideration of 

 the expenditure incurred in the publication of the Transactions, 



