of Edinburgh. Session 1881-82. 
421 
PEIYATE BUSINESS. 
The Society adopted the amendment of Law XIV. proposed by 
Professor Crum Brown, and decided that in that law the words De- 
cember to July shall be substituted for the words November to June. 
Mr. Sang moved the addition to Law XIV. of the following 
words: — “Excepting when there are five Mondays in January, in 
which case the meetings shall be held on the third and fourth 
Mondays of that month.” 
Mr. D. B. Dott and I)r. James Clerk Bat tray were balloted for, 
and declared duly elected Bellows of the Society. 
Monday , 3 Oth January 1882. 
Emeritus Professor BALFOUR, Vice-President, 
in the Chair. 
The Chairman referred in feeling terms to the great loss sustained 
by the Society in the death of Sir Robert Christison, late President 
of the Society. 
The Right Hon. the Earl of Rosebery was admitted a Fellow of 
the Society. 
1. The Historic Evidence for the Destruction of Pompeii and 
Herculaneum. By the Rev. Dr. Cazenove. 
{An Address given at the request of the Council . ) 
It will conduce to clearness if, before making any remarks, I take 
the liberty of reproducing the title of this address in a slightly enlarged 
form. In order to convey a precise idea of my object, it will be 
desirable to frame it thus : — 
“On the Evidence (prior to the Excavations commenced in a.d. 1755) 
for the Destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum by the Eruption 
of Vesuvius in a.d. 79.” 
It will be seen from this way of putting the case, that I propose 
to confine my attention to documentary evidence. The reference to 
Vesuvius is also important, because it might conceivably be 
maintained, and indeed it has been maintained within the present 
century, that these cities were destroyed by other agencies, and not 
by the outburst of the neighbouring volcano. 
