170 J. H. MAIDEN. 



weather notes. The request has not been very encouragingly 

 replied to. 



"It must be rememberod that in our country districts, we have 

 no leisured class, and I fear that, from occasional remarks furnished 

 with returns, the recording of fundamental climatological data 

 becomes at times irksome and a tax upon the time of many of our 

 worthy settlers ; I have, therefore, hesitated to press for pheno- 

 logical observations. 



" It may be that if a tabulation and grouping into districts of 

 plants, insects, and birds, such as you suggest, were supplied to 

 observers, it would stimulate an interest and facilitate a study of 

 the subject This Department has neither the material nor the 

 qualification to classify and locate the plant, insect, and bird life 

 of Australia, but should the work be undertaken, I will gladly 

 distribute such with our usual annual supplies to observers, and 

 plead again with them for co-operation in this interesting and 

 valuable science. To place your views effectively and completely, 

 would it not be advisable to consult with the entomologists and 

 ornithologists of the various States before submitting the question 

 to observers?" 



