Proceedings of the South African Philosophical Society. xi 
The SECRETARY read a note on ‘Ocean Currents, Sand-dunes, 
and the Wreck of the Ismore,”’ by Mr. Garwood Alston. 
Mr. C. Stewart communicated a paper on ‘ River Bars and 
Ocean Currents,” by Captain A. E. Pakeman of East London. 
ORDINARY MontTHuy MEETING. 
May 2, 1900. 
L. PERINGUEY, President, in the Chair. 
The Minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed. 
Prof. H. KE. 8. Fremantue, B.A. (Oxon.), South African College, 
was nominated for election as an ordinary member by Messrs. 
CoRSTORPHINE and PHRINGUEY. 
His Excellency Sir Aurrep Minner, K.C.B., G.C.M.G., was 
elected as an ordinary member. 
Mr. Scuarer exhibited a portion of a bone found at a considerable 
depth below the surface in Grave Street, and presented to the 
Museum by Colonel Feilden. The bone was obviously the upper 
portion of the radius and ulna of a large ungulate animal; it 
appeared to be too large for an ox, and Mr. Sclater suggested that 
it might perhaps be that of a hippopotamus. If this was so, it was 
interesting as confirming the statement in Van Riebeek’s diary, that 
hippopotami were in the habit of wallowing in the marsh which 
formerly existed on the site of what is now Church Square. 
The Rev. Dr. F. C. KouBe read a:paper entitled, ‘‘ Ultimate 
Analysis of Our Concept of Matter.” 
The lecturer first briefly stated the four prevailing views on the 
subject—the mechanical, the dynamic, the vortical, and the 
Scholastic or Aristotelian. The first analyses the world into 
separately existing atoms, and accounts for all diversity of 
phenomena by their relative motions. The second reduces the 
universe to centres of force. The third analyses matter into an 
almost entirely indeterminate substratum, absolutely homogeneous, 
into which variety of form is introduced by energy alone. The 
fourth admits no differentiation at all in the substratum, takes 
account rather of the combinations of particles than of the particles 
combined, and analyses the world into an indeterminate matter 
placed in existence by a hierarchy of forms. The first two theories 
being for various reasons rejected, the lecturer stated that the 
purpose of this paper was to reconcile the third and the fourth. 
This he did by showing how slight a change Lord Kelvin would 
