2 
cover some traces of their past, some evidence 
of their intellectual capacity, some proofs 
of their connection with other races of mankind. 
It seems to be the duty of the Government, 
particularly when dialect after dialect of the 
Australian language is fast dying out, to collect 
with real care what can still be saved out of this 
sinking wreck of humanity. What should we 
give now for a list of words collected from the 
mouths of the Etrurians or Carthaginians, aye, 
even of the Scythians or Vandals. Such lists 
would tell us more than the mute monuments 
of Etruria and Carthage ; more than the vague 
accounts of Herodotus or Jornandes. The 
problem of the origin and ethnological relation- 
ship of the first settlers in Australia is of 
greater importance to the student of the ancient 
history of mankind than the question whether 
the Etruscans were of Aryan or Semitic origin, 
whether the language of the Scythians was 
Aryan or Turanian ; and I feel certain that the 
names of those who by a patient and careful 
collection of Australian vocables enable the stu- 
dent of ethnology, it may be a hundred years 
hence or more, to determine with scientific pre- 
cision the original descent and the earliest mi- 
grations of the inhabitants of that island chain 
between the two great continents of the world 
will be remembered with the same gratitude 
with which Grimm quoted the name of Dios- 
corides for having left us a meagre list of Da- 
cian names of flowers, or the name of Ulpitas 
for having translated the Bible into the bar- 
barous jargon of the Goths. Names of places, 
mountains, rivers, proper names, names of clans 
(if possible, with their original meaning), the 
Words of every-day life, pronouns, numerals, 
perhaps an outline of grammar, and some 
description of manners, customs, superstitions 
and religion — all this, though apparently mere 
dross, would turn out to be precious metal if 
properly tested, sifted, and melted by expe- 
rienced hands. — I have the honor to be, sir, 
your most obedient servant, 
“ Max Muller. 
“The Hon. James Cockle, E.R.S., Chief 
Justice, Queensland.’' 
The members then proceeded to the election 
of the council and officers for the year 1870, 
with the following result : — President — Sir 
James Cockle, E.R.S., Chief Justice ; Vice- 
President — Mr. C. Coxen j Treasurer — Mr. A. 
Half j Curators — Messrs. S. Diggles and W. H. 
Miskin •, Council — Drs. Waugh and Bancroft, 
Messrs. S. Griffith and G. Wight ; Secretary 
—Mr. J. S. Gray. 
The meeting then adjourned to Thursday, 
13th January instant, on which occasion the 
President delivered the following address : — 
My thanks are due to the society for honoring 
me with a re-election to this chair, and for the 
consideration shown in permitting me to defer 
this address. I may seem to have the less ex- 
cuse for the delay, inasmuch as the society has 
indulged me, on more than one occasion, by 
allowing me to leave the duty altogether un- 
performed. The task is not an easy one, and I 
could have wished that our excellent vice-presi- 
dent, Mr. Coxen, had consented to undertake it. 
A certain sameness of tone is likely to pervade 
successive addresses made by one person, who 
is perhaps apt to draw his topics and illustra- 
tions from sources which may be more interest- 
ing to him than to his audience. The present 
state of the society I leave to be gathered from 
the report. Not being one of its founders, I 
may be pardoned for saying that I think grati- 
tude is owing to those who established this 
association. Such a body, though in a young 
community it cannot anticipate a rapid pro- 
gress, or very striking immediate results, sup- 
plies a want, and may cherish a reasonable hope 
of future usefulness. Similar societies exist, 
and I hope flourish, in several, if not all, of these 
colonies. I learn from the inaugural address of 
the Rev. W. B. Clarke, that the Royal Society of 
New South Wales commenced in 1821, as the Phi- 
losophical Society of Australasia, and in 1850, after 
a long interval of silence and inactivity, it came 
out as the Australian Philosophical Society, till 
in 1856 it became represented by the Philosophi- 
cal Society of New South Wales, merging itself 
on May 1, 1866, in the Royal Society of New 
South Wales. Many of the remarks in that in- 
teresting address are applicable to ourselves, 
and the obstacles to any very rapid progress are 
probably the same here as in the parent colony. 
It certainly is encouraging to learn that the 
society of New South Wales has, under various 
names, survived the vicissitudes of nearly half 
a century. I shall extract a passage or two 
from Mr. Baker’s address. “We have seen,” 
says the vice-president, “ that our province is 
not in the mysterious labyrinth of mental specu- 
lation. We need not, therefore, trouble our- 
selves with any questions of that class. We have 
before us in this colony a vast region, much of 
which is still untrodden ground. . . All that 
we have to trouble ourselves with is the right 
interpretation and developement of these 
physical riches, so bountifully spread around 
and beneath us for our investigation and use.” 
I long since and from this chair insisted on the 
opportunities which, as a field of observation, a 
new country offers. By availing ourselves of 
these advantages we may obtain results, not 
interesting and important to ourselves only, but 
interesting and important to the world at large 
as well as to the world of science. It must be 
confessed, however, that communications on such 
subjects have not been so frequent as to enable 
us to dispense with contributions of other kinds. 
In fact there have been times when our society 
seems to have languished from a dearth of sub- 
jects of discussion, and when, as I think I may 
venture to say, any paper on any scientific or 
philosophical subject whatever would have been 
warmly welcomed. It may be a question whe- 
ther our range is not too limited i ather than too 
wide. I recollect that some time ago, at a meet- 
