PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS. 21 



practically two and a-lialf years ahead, and consequently 

 the arrangements for the visit are not yet crystallised. 

 The Premier of the Commonwealth Government, whose 

 enlightened action has rendered it possible for the meeting 

 to be held in Australia at all, has recently made the 

 announcement that about 150 representatives of British 

 science will attend. The arrangements made and con- 

 templated, will be announced as far as possible at the 

 Melbourne meeting of the Australasian Association for the 

 Advancement of Science. 



I refer to the matter thus briefly, to remind members of 

 this Society of the approach of the most stupendous event 

 in the history of gatherings of scientific men (and women) 

 in Australia. I hope that members of this Society will 

 not only become members of the British Association, at 

 least for this meeting, but that they will even now begin 

 to revolve in their minds in what way they can contribute 

 to the enjoyment of our guests, both in the way of showing 

 them the treasures of our scientific institutions, and in 

 assisting them to a knowledge of our scientific and material 

 resources. 



3. The sequence of early Scientific Societies in New 

 South Wales. — I have already referred to the 1821 Society 

 "The Philosophical Society of Australasia" of which ours 

 is a direct successor. This was a purely scientific Society, 

 and when it was fouud that, for many years, the small 

 population of Sydney and of the colony generally, could not 

 support a strictly scientific organisation, agricultural, 

 horticultural and kindred societies took up the work, and 

 afforded opportunities for scientific discussion, scientific 

 lectures, and exhibits of scientific objects. I have for 

 some years been collecting data concerning these societies, 

 which kept the torch of science burning, and offer the 

 following brief notes. 



