68 
PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 
South London Microscopical and Natural History Club. 
An ordinary meeting of tlie above club was held on Tuesday 
evening, January 18, at the Angell Town Institution, Brixton. 
Charles Stewart, Esq., M.E.C.S., F.L.S., President, in the chair. 
An address was delivered by W. M. Ord, Esq., M.D., F.E.C.P., on 
*' Some of the Physical Conditions which determine the Forms of 
Minute Bodies." 
At the ordinary meeting held on Tuesday evening, February 15, 
Eobert Braithwaite, Esq., M.D., F.L.S., Vice-President, in the chair, 
a paper on " The Structure and Classification of some of the higher 
Fungi" was read by T. Howse, Esq., F.L.S. The lecturer restricted 
his remarks to the family Hymenomycetes, and after describing 
in detail the characteristics of the orders of which the common 
mushroom is a type, and the researches of Mr. Worthington Smith 
into the fertilization and reproduction of these fungi, Mr. Howse 
gave an account of the six orders into which this family is divided, 
devoting especial attention to the subdivisions of the genus Agaricus 
into five sub-genera according to the colour of the spores, each of 
these being again divided into three groups according to the structure 
of the hymenium. The other orders Polyporei, Hydnei, Auricularini, 
Clavati, and TremelUni, were successively described, and the charac- 
teristics of edible fungi were then pointed out. In conclusion, Mr. 
Howse gave a list of places in the district where the search for 
specimens could be successfully prosecuted. 
The annual meeting of the club was held on Tuesday evening, 
March 21, Charles Stewart, Esq., M.E.C.S., F.L.S., President, in 
the chair. 
The following gentlemen were elected as officers for the ensuing 
year: — President, Charles Stewart, M.E.C.S., F.L.S. ; Vice-Presidents, 
W. T. Suffolk, F.E.M.S. ; Eobert Braithwaite, M.D., F.L.S. ; and T. 
Eogers, F.L.S. Treasurer, B. Neighbour. Committee, N. Stowers, 
M.E.C.S., L.S.A. ; J. W. Stephenson, F.E.A.S. ; C. W. Stidstone ; 
W. J. Parks; J. F. Wight; E.Dadswell; H. Helsham, M.D., F.E.C.S.; 
H. Eobinson ; and J. A. Smith. Honorary Secretary, F. Hovenden. 
Eeporter, T. G. Ackland. 
The Eeport of the Committee was then read by the Secretary. 
The committee congratulated the members on the continued increase 
in their number, the total of members on March 1 being 262. The 
Eeport then reviewed the work of the past year, and concluded as 
follows : 
" The committee begin to feel that one of the objects of the club 
is taking root, namely, the gradual education of the members in 
microscopical science, and they venture to hope that soon the 
members, from their increased knowledge, will be able to enter 
more fully into the discussions, and also extend the number of papers 
given by them in the course of each year. In conclusion, the com- 
