PREFACE 



THE present Volume of the Transactions of the Victoria 

 Institute is one of the smallest which has been issued. This 

 is due to the influence of the War, which has seriously diminished 

 the resources of the Institute, and has increased the cost of printing, 

 paper, and binding. The Council, therefore, considered it advisable, 

 for reasons of economy, to depart this year from its old-established 

 practice of circulating in advance proofs of the papers to be read ; 

 but, as the lack of such advance proofs has been felt to be a loss to 

 the discussions, it has been resolved to revert to the old practice 

 during the forthcoming Session. 



The record of the past Session gives deep cause for thankfulness. 

 The liberal response made to the appeal for a Special Fund has 

 relieved for the time the serious financial difficulty in which the 

 "War placed the Institute. The attendances at the Meetings have 

 been very good, remarkably so when it is remembered how 

 closely everyone has been occupied. The interest in the papers has 

 been fully maintained, and the tone and spirit of the Meetings 

 have been most encouraging. 



The subjects discussed include two papers dealing with questions 

 of physical science : — " The Tides " and " The Movements of the 

 Stars," and a third paper, that on " The Spectra of Stars and 

 Nebulae," a brief abstract of which appeared in Vol. XLVII, is 

 given here in full. Six papers have dealt directly or indirectly 

 with Holy Scripture. Two of them supplement each other in 

 striking fashion, the one treating of " The Principles of Bible 

 Translation/' the other of " The Connection between the Vulgate 

 Version and the Theology of the Western Church." " The Unity 

 of Isaiah " has been maintained by a minute analysis of the words 



