Anniversary address 135 



ment of human society through its various stages in its 

 language, its architecture, its industries, and its local 

 habitations. 



But our Club furnishes us with an antidote to the 

 despondency which those lessons of limitation might 

 otherwise engender. If we do not know everything 

 individually, what a storeliouse of knowledge there is 

 among us collectively, and how freely that is placed 

 at the service of every member who asks for it ! 



I am personally conscious of a vast amount of labour 

 saved by the information so generously given by the 

 various members of the Club whenever it has been sought. 

 It is so much easier to take in information given 

 by the living voice in friendly converse, than to seek 

 for it in books not always at hand, nor always written 

 for the imperfectly educated mind and faculties we bring 

 to the book. We are the more readily placed in the 

 congenial sympathy which imparts the knowledge, or 

 receives it, as it is convenient. 



And, after all, it is this folk-lore and local history, this 

 combination of science and observation which gives the real 

 interest and pleasure to our meetings. We leave each other 

 on such occasions happy in having contributed something 

 to the knowledge of others, or of having added to our 

 own by the response to our enquiries. 



I should like, in closing, to make one or two suggestions. 

 I think it might be useful to try and classify the names 

 of villages, hamlets, and towns in the counties we usually 

 visit. It would, I believe, help us to know better the 

 races, the habits, and wanderings of the various settlers 

 whose contributed weakness and strength we have in- 

 herited. 



There are certain classes of birds whose habits are 

 giving rise to much discussion. Could we not try to 

 summarise our individual observations as to the ways and 

 doings of rooks, starlings, and sparrows ? There is a great 

 deal of general information respecting some of these, 

 scattered up and down, in the History of our Club, which 



