16 Inaugural Address. 



Dr. Shanks, Head of the Army Medical Staff. 



Samuel Stutchbury, Esq., Mineralogical and Geological Sur- 

 veyor. 



Eev. G-. E. Turner, L.L.B. 



E. G. Want, Esq. ; with 



R. A. A. Morehead, Esq., as Treasurer; and ■ 



H. G. Douglass, Esq., M.D., as Honorary Secretary, 

 to whom was afterwards attached the late A. Myles, Esq., In- 

 spector of Police. Dr. Douglass ought to have the chief credit 

 of the revival, though I do not know to what extent. I remem- 

 ber that I attended the first meeting, and several afterwards. But 

 as in 1851, '2, '3, I was in the wilderness, exploring, I have only a 

 general dim recollection of what took place during that period. 

 As Mr. Douglass and Mr. Myles are no more, and Mr. Morehead 

 is in Europe, I have not been able to obtain access to the official 

 records of the Society, but I am informed by our Assistant 

 Secretary that some time before the death of Dr. Douglass, appli- 

 cation was made to him in reference to the records and papers ; 

 but they were not then in his possession, nor did he know what 

 had become of them. Mr. Morehead's papers have also been 

 searched for in vain. Since then, from Mr. Catlett's further 

 search in the newspapers, at my request, a few data have been 

 gleaned, which enable me to put on record now some of the pro- 

 ceedings. 



The proposal to form an Australian Philosophical Society was 

 made in January, 1850 ; on the 24th January the Herald news- 

 paper introduced it by a leading article. Mr. IN orton wrote an 

 intended oration, which he published on the 14th February. 



On 17th June, a paper by Sir T. L. Mitchell, " On the Un- 

 developed Resources of the County of Cumberland," was read by 

 Dr. Douglass, and some discussion ensued on " dye woods," and 

 "on the fossil bones of the New Zealand Moa," in which, I find, 

 I took a considerable part. 



On 5th September, papers were read by Sir T. L. Mitchell, on 

 the natural fruits and grasses of the colony ; by Mr. C. Lowe, on 

 the " Argonauta, or Paper Nautilus" ; on the Alpaca; and by 

 Mr. Gee, on Dyes. 



On 20th October, Mr. Edwin Hickey read " Observations on 

 the alleged scarcity of Cedar in New South Wales." 



