134 Dr Lauder Lindsay on the Place and Power of 
in his hands be made popular and most attractive. Such courses 
of instruction would, or should, be attended by, or at least open 
to, the ladies of the province; and, if they do not differ remark- 
ably from their fair sisters at home, the Provincial naturalist 
would not find them his least anxious caterers, his least zealous 
supporters. Natural History has become a common and favourite 
feminine study at home—with what success the ferneries, the 
albums of sea-weeds, the baskets of shells, the marine aqua- 
vivaria of our ladies’ fancy bazaars sufficiently testify. But he 
might disseminate his knowledge much more widely, While on 
his tours, he might lecture in district schoolhouses and churches, 
a boon which I venture to predict would be duly appreciated in 
country districts. I am assured on every hand, both in town and 
country, that lecturers are ‘at a premium,” to use a commercial 
phrase: they are scarce, sometimes ‘‘ not to be had,” (to which 
circumstance, by the way, I must not forget, I probably owe my 
presence here this evening), and any addition to the lecturing staff 
of the province would be most acceptable. The newspapers are 
also open to such an officer; with a daily sheet at his command, 
how rapidly could he disseminate information—how easily 
announce the arrivals of specimens, intimate his excursions or 
lectures, and issue his suggestions. The Press, by and by, will 
be open to him in a more substantial and permanent form. You 
will doubtless, in due course, have your publishing houses in 
-Dunedin, whereby he may issue his pamphlets, or his volumes, on 
subjects bearing on Provincial Natural History. It will naturally 
occur to some of you, as an objection to the appointment of such 
an officer, that such appointment would entail a very heavy ex- 
pense. This, however, 1s not necessarily the case; though, even 
if it were, I think you would find the outlay well invested. At 
home there are many young men, enthusiasts in the pursuit of 
Natural History, who would be delighted with the privilege of 
occupying so novel and so rich a field, with so brilliant a prospect 
of gathering their laurels—of making substantial additions to 
science—with so promising a sphere of usefulness. Such youths 
are to be found as assistant-curators in our public Museums, our 
University and National Museums, and the experience they have 
there acquired would render them most useful public officers here. 
Some of this class, I should think, would be glad to come to 
terms. They would probably look more to their opportunities as 
men of science, than to mere salary or emoluments, though in- 
dubitably Naturalists must live as well as other people, and on 
something more substantial than enthusiasm. In addition to a 
guaranteed salary, which, considering his real usefulness and 
scientific status, should, in my opinion, be handsome, such an 
officer might be permitted by his employers, be they the Govern- 
; 
