Report to the General yfeeting. 
ix 
chemical research, and has aroused a spirit of inquiry in this 
department of agriculture, which cannot fail to produce very 
satisfactory results. They trust therefore that the continuation 
of the publication of these reports of the Consulting Chemist 
may not be less advantageous to the members of the Society 
than they have hitherto been. 
The Council have to announce that they have appointed Mr. 
\V. Carruthers, F.R.S., Chief of the National Botanical Collec- 
tion at the British Museum, to be the Consulting Botanist to 
the Society. In making this appointment the Council have 
endeavoured to secure the services of a competent Botanist, 
whose duty it will be to examine plants, seeds, &c., for the 
members of the Society ; to report on the principal work per- 
formed by him during each year ; and from time to time to 
furnish papers to the Journal on special subjects of botanical 
interest. The following schedule of charges has been provision- 
ally fixed by the Council for the examination of plants and seeds 
for the use of members of the Society : — 
No. 
1. — A general opinion as to the genuineness and age of a samjjle 
of clover-seed (each sample) 5s. 
2. — A detailed examination of a sample of dirty or impure 
clover-seed, with a report on its admixture with seeds of 
dodder or other wetds (each sample) 10s. 
3 — A test examination of turnip or other cruciferous seed, with 
a report on its germinating power, or its adulteration 
with 000 seed (each sample) 10s. 
4. — A test examination of any other kind of seed or corn, with a 
report on its germinating power (each sample) .. .. 10s. 
5. — Determination of the species of any indigenous British plant 
(not parasitic) with a report on its habits (e;ich species) os. 
6. — Determination of the species of any epiphyte or vegetable 
parasite, on any farm-crop grown by the Member, with a 
report on its habits, and suggestions (where jiossible) as 
to its extermination or prevention (each species) .. .. 10s. 
7. — fieport on any other form of plant disease not caused by 
insects 10s. 
8. — Determination of the species of a collection of natural grasses 
indigenoits to any district on one kind of soil (each 
collection) 10s. 
The prevalence of Foot and Mouth Disease in English herds 
has induced the Council, on more than one occasion during the 
past half-year, to draw the attention of the Government to the ex- 
isting regulations in reference to the importation of both Foreign 
and Irish Cattle, and to the restrictions which it is desirable to 
impose in order to diminish the risk of their conveying con- 
