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why this most attractive subject has not found votaries among 

 us is that we have not here men and women Avith the leisure 

 necessary for its successful prosecution. Perhaps one of our 

 ex-Presidents who has now retired from active service in one 

 field will turn his attention to this subject. 



One young Gruernseyman, Mr. H. Fleure, B. Sc, has 

 gained distinction for original research in this branch of 

 Natural History, thereby gaining a Fellowship of his University, 

 and I hope he may be induced to devote some of his holiday 

 time among the treasures of our coasts. If some member who 

 at once has the leisure and the liking for marine work will 

 allow himself or herself to be nominated Secretary of a section 

 for Marine Zoology, I think that will be the first and a most 

 important step in the direction of getting this branch of Science 

 investigated. The appointment of sectional secretaries in 

 other branches gave a great impetus, and why not in this case ? 

 The museum in connection with this Institution contains a 

 fairly complete collection of crustaceans, echinoderms, &c, 

 which will be excellent for reference. And, while speaking of 

 the museum, may I be allowed to say I think it should be 

 par excellence a local one. It is manifestly impossible to 

 make it worth anything as a general museum, and interesting 

 as it may be to the casual visitor to see odds and ends from 

 every corner of the earth, it can only be of true educational 

 value as an exposition of the riches of our own district, a 

 place where the enquiring student can find specimens by which 

 to identify his latest "find." 



Any great addition to the list of plants can hardly be 

 expected, still there are many interesting facts connected with 

 the distribution of the flora in these islands which might 

 profitably be studied in connection with their geological and 

 geographical feature, as indicated by Mr. Marquand in his 

 paper on " The Flowering Plants of Guernsey " read before 

 the Society in 1891. 



In geology, the old question of the clays and their origin 

 and mode of deposition, diametrically opposite views on which 

 are held by two distinguished members of the Society, needs 

 further investigation. Evidence of glacial action, especially 

 the striation of rocks, should be searched for. The evidence 

 of it is slight, I know, so far : but further search with the 

 express object in view may enable us to pronounce definitely 

 on the point. I read lately in a geographical journal that 

 asbestos is found here in the Channel Islands. Now we know 

 hornblende enters largely into the composition of our rocks, 

 often to the exclusion of mica ; but I was unaware that this 



