Anniversary Address. 419 



the least necessary to be always making great discoveries. 

 It was enough to meet and hold pleasant intercourse for 

 information and friendly discussion on subjects of common 

 interest. Of such meetings Dr. Johnston was the life and 

 soul, and when men had once come within the circle and felt 

 the charm of such intercourse, it is no wonder if, on remov- 

 ing to other districts, they sought to set up similar institu- 

 tions — the example was one which could not fail to spread. 



Within the district itself the Club has done much to dif- 

 fuse a knowledge of Natural History. In some quarters this 

 was desirable. When the New Statistical Account of Scot- 

 land was first projected about 1830, a series of questions 

 was addressed to all the Parish Ministers, and among other 

 things they were asked whether there were any remarkable 

 Boulders in the parish. Soon afterwards, it so happened 

 that a number of these gentlemen were met within the 

 bounds of this Club, and one of them drawing attention to 

 this query, asked what it meant — what was a Boulder? 

 The question went round, and it turned out that no one 

 present was able to tell. That took place — not in Berwick- 

 shire — about the time when this Club was instituted, and I 

 remember Dr. Johnston and Mr. Baird speaking of it. 

 Thanks to what has since been done among us, the time 

 has long gone by when such an incident could have occurred. 



It is not for me in this Address to attempt to estimate 

 the value of the many important contributions to Natural 

 History and Archaeology which have appeared in your Pro- 

 ceedings. In the conversations which took place when the 

 Club was formed, there was a kind of ambitious desire 

 expressed to make our native district notable in the view of 

 the scientific world, securing for it a name and a place in the 

 history of scientific research. It is little that some of us 

 have been able to do in carrying out this design, but thanks 

 to Dr. Johnston and not a few able coadjutors it has been to 

 a large extent attained. Even among the outside public 

 this is acknowledged. During the present year a copy of 

 your Proceedings has been offered for sale in the Catalogue of 

 a London Bookseller, at the price of XI 3 13s, and I believe 



