THEIR OBJECTS AND ORGANIZATION. 109 



perhaps about one third or one fourth — and their field arrange- 

 ments seem to be considerably adapted to the convenience of the 

 fair sex, as regards length of walks, &c. For the same reason, 

 I suppose, it was thought desirable, in one of the circulars of the 

 Liverpool Club sent to me last summer, to state that the "mini- 

 mum stile gauge" in the course of the afternoon's excursion was 

 one foot. These two Clubs (Manchester and Liverpool) seem to 

 content themselves chiefly with afternoon excursions, starting at 

 one or two oclock and getting tea at five — mostly in some school- 

 room or other suitable place lent for the purpose. I need scarcely 

 say that I think our time-honoured course of proceeding, taking 

 tbe whole day for an excursion, is much preferable to that of the 

 Lancashire men. Neither should I like to see introduced into 

 our programmes the system of giving prizes for the best collec- 

 tions of plants gathered during the clay's excursion. In the case 

 of rare species existing only on a very limited area, one can scarcely 

 imagine a better device to ensure their speedy extermination. 

 Moreover, the practice can scarcely promote the good of science 

 in any way that I can see. The study of Nature ought to be 

 and is, to every real student, its own reward, and I should think 

 that such a one will scarcely be found condescending to a compe- 

 tition for a prize of this kind. During a recent visit to Man- 

 chester, I learnt from a lady who occasionally attended these 

 meetings, that many rare plants had in fact been exterminated 

 by the process referred to. 



The Liverpool naturalists try a dredging excursion occasionally 

 for a change, but on board a steamer crowded with a multitude 

 of the curious of both sexes, it is not likely that much serviceable 

 dredging can be done ; and such is practically the case, for so far 

 as I can learn, nothing of consequence has been taken on these 

 excursions. 



The one point in which the Lancashire Clubs surpass us — and 

 I fear it must be confessed that in this respect we are "no- 

 where" — is in the magnificence of their Winter Evening Soirees 

 and Conversaziones. But though one can scarcely help looking 

 with a sort of envy on these grand demonstrations, I am, for my 

 own part, very far from wishing that the energy and funds of 



