1868.] 



President's Address. 



135 



The President then addressed the Society as follows : — 

 Gentlemen, 



I have the satisfaction of now laying before you the second volume of 

 the Catalogue of Scientific Papers. The volume now completed carries on 

 the list of titles in alphabetical order as far as Gea, inclusive. The Li- 

 brary Committee, under whose superintendence the Catalogue is published, 

 had hoped that the printing of the work would have made greater progress 

 than it has done during the time that has elapsed since the appearance of 

 the first volume ; but notwithstanding their earnest endeavours to attain 

 that object, they found that, with due regard to the careful revision of the 

 press, the rate of printing could not be materially accelerated. 



In fulfilment of the understanding with Her Majesty's Government, 

 explained in my Address last year, copies have been presented to various 

 Scientific Institutions and individuals, according to a list drawn up by the 

 Council, and approved by the Treasury. It is gratifying to know that in 

 the numerous letters of acknowledgment received in return, as well as 

 more publicly through the press, the value of the work as an aid to 

 scientific research has been warmly recognized. As a special instance of 

 this favourable expression of opinion, I would refer to the ample notice of 

 the book written by our Foreign Member, Hofrath W. Eitter v. Haidinger, 

 of Vienna, and circulated by him in different parts of Europe. 



Already of the remaining copies 120 have been sold. 



My last year's Address contained an accoimt of the proceedings of the 

 Committee of the Royal Society, which, at the request of Her Majesty's 

 Government, had undertaken the reorganization and superintendence of 

 the meteorological department of the Board of Trade. The year that 

 has since elapsed has been employed, 1°, In perfecting the instrumental 

 arrangements, and the systematic working of the staff, at the seven British 

 Observatories which have been supplied, under the Committee's direction, 

 with continuously self-recording meteorological apparatus. For this pur- 

 pose one or more of the staff of each Observatory has passed some days at 

 the Central Observatory at Kew ; and the Observatories themselves have 

 been visited, some by Mr. Scott, the Director of the Meteorological Office 

 in London, and all by Mr. Stewart, the Superintendent of the Central 

 Observatory, and also by Mr. Beckley, the Engineer of the Kew Establish- 

 ment. By these means it is hoped that uniformity of action on thoroughly 

 well considered principles has been secured, and a considerable advance 

 made towards the systematic record of the meteorological phenomena over 

 the British Islands. The monthly records are now beginning to be re- 

 ceived at the Office in London with regularity from all the Observatories, 

 but have scarcely yet quite attained in all instances to that uniform accu- 

 racy which it is hoped will be fully secured at the close of the present 



VOL. XVII. L 



