8 



Prospectus of an Indian Association for the advancement of 



Natural Science. 



The additional interest that objects connected with natu- 

 ral history and geology has assumed within the last few 

 years, renders it desirable, if not altogether necessary, to 

 examine how far an institution solely devoted to such objects 

 would be calculated to facilitate the cultivation of those 

 sciences in India. It cannot have escaped those who are 

 devoted to natural history that existing Societies are not 

 adapted to promote that pursuit, as well from their paucity 

 of means, as from their objects being chiefly directed to 

 investigations in literature, agriculture, and medicine. 



It appears also from the distance at which those natu- 

 ralists are scattered over India who are competent to give 

 a tone and character to the proceedings of a Society such 

 as we allude to, that periodical meetings for the discus- 

 sion of papers could not conveniently be held at any one 

 place, and that in the absence of competent members, it 

 were better that no such meetings were at all held. 



With both these circumstances in view, it would be ne- 

 cessary in order to secure the efficiency and integrity of 

 a Society of the kind proposed, to limit its business to such 

 objects as should render meetings unnecessary. 



The British Association as well as the Academia Naturae 

 Curiosorum, hold their meetings, the first in all parts of 

 Great Britain and Ireland, and the second in all parts of 

 Germany; and in as much as they are not confined to any 

 particular town, assimilate to the character of the proposed 

 Society for India. The only difference is, that here there 

 could not conveniently be any meetings, as the cultivators 

 of science are so few, and the nature of their various duties 

 such as to prevent their assembling at any one place. 



