A XXI VERS ART ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT. 5 I 



M. Cornet entered with him into a scientific partnership, and from 

 this time forth all the valuable geological researches which they 

 carried on were published under their joint names. In 1865 they 

 announced the discovery of an older series of Eocene strata than 

 had hitherto been recognized, and in subsequent papers the strati- 

 graphy and palaeontology of these most ancient members of the 

 Tertiary series and of the underlying Cretaceous rocks were carefully 

 elaborated. These papers were, however, interspersed with others 

 bearing upon anthropological questions and on the Carboniferous 

 strata of Belgium. During the later years of his life M. Cornet was 

 engaged in developing the remarkable industry which had arisen in 

 Mons through the working of the phosphate beds of the Chalk. In 

 1883 he was elected one of our Foreign Correspondents, and only 

 last year he contributed to our Journal a very valuable paper 

 describing the Cretaceous strata of Mons which contain the remark- 

 able deposits of phosphate of lime. Little did we think at the time 

 that this was the last communication which would come from his 

 hands, but in January last we received the sad news of his death at 

 the age of 53. 



The Report of the Council indicates a very flourishing condition 

 of our affairs — both in respect to the number of our Fellows and the 

 state of our finances ; but I need scarcely remind you that, 

 gratifying as these circumstances are, the true index of the well- 

 being of our Society is to be found in the amount and importance 

 of the original work done by its members, as shown by the contents 

 of our annual volume. During the past year the number of papers 

 submitted to the Society has been at least as large as in any 

 previous year, and I am persuaded that when tried by the test of 

 time there will be found to be no falling off in their scientific value. 



In a year when so much attention has been directed to our 

 Colonial and Indian possessions, and when we have had the pleasure 

 of greeting in this room some of our most active members, who are 

 citizens of the Greater Britain beyond the seas, it is not surprising that 

 communications bearing on the geology of these British " outliers " 

 have been as numerous and valuable as they were welcome. 



The Societies which occupy common ground with ourselves — our 

 valued auxiliaries the Palaaontographical Society, the Mineralogical 

 Society, and the Geologists' Association — have well kept pace in 

 the ever-forward movements of the past year ; the numerous 

 provincial Geological Societies and Field-clubs have all aided in 



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