SELIiORNE SOCIETY NOTICES 
59 
of the finances was satisfactory, there being a small balance in hand, but the work 
of the Branch could be more extended if there was a larger subscription list. 
Many notices for the preservation of birds and wild plants, it was announced, 
had been placed in the railway stations, through the kind co-operation of the 
District Superintendents of the various Railway Companies. 
EXCURSIONS. 
Saturday, /annary — On this afternoon sixteen members were privileged 
to visit the headquarters of the British Rainfall Organisation at 62, Camden 
Square, and to listen to the able description of the methods and implements 
employed given by the Director, Dr. II. R. Mill, President of the Royal 
Meteorological Society. Dr. Mill first showed the members the various instru- 
ments indoors, including barometers, both direct-reading and self-recording, 
hygrometers, and an electric recorder connected with a rain-gauge outside. 
After these were shown the outdoor instruments, thermometers, rain-gauges, the 
evaporation tank, sunshine recorder, &c. , all of which were most lucidly explained 
by Dr. Mill and his assistant, Mr. C. Salter. One point that attracted much 
interest was the difference between the temperature of the air and that at various 
depths below ground. The air record was 35°, one foot below the surface it was 
39'^, at 4 feet 43°, and at to feet 49°. The party then inspected maps of the 
British Isles, showing the rainfall and sunshine of past years, and one indicating 
the distribution and depth of the snowfall of last Christmas. Amongst copies of the 
early records of rainfall preserved at Camden Square, special interest attaches to 
that kept by Gilbert White at Selborne from 1779 to 1793. Records are pre- 
served from 1677, and each year adds more than 4,000 returns to the archives. 
Dr. Mill then kindly entertained the party to tea and presented each member 
with a copy of the annual publication British Rainfall, now in its f.>rty-sixth year 
of issue, and numerous interesting pamphlets. A hearty vote of thanks to Dr. 
Mill and Mr. Salter was passed on the proposition of Mr. Hugh Boyd Watt, 
seconded by the Excursions Secretary. The Selbornians then left, strongly 
imbued with the great interest that had been imparted to the generally-con- 
sidered “ dry ” science of meteorology by the expert handling of the guide. 
Rainfall records are still lacking for many districts throughout the country, 
and Dr. Mill would be glad to hear from anyone svilling to supply these wants. 
It is to be hoped that .Selbornians will respond to this call in large numbers. The 
cost of the necessary instruments is very small and the interest of the study would 
soon repay observers for the slight labour involved. Many new workers are 
needed in Ireland and the north of .Scotland, while in the metropolis records are 
wanted in the boroughs of Shoreditch, Hackney, Bethnal Green, Hammersmith, 
Paddington, Southwark and Bermondsey. Ongar, Stowmarket, Hunstanton, 
Tintage!, Stowell, Napton, Rosedale and Bishop Auckland all cry aloud for 
observers. 
Saturday, yanuary 26. — The Bird Room at the British Museum (Natural 
History) was by the kindness of Dr. Bowdler Sharpe (Vice-President of the 
Selborne Society) thrown open to members on this day, and forty-three availed 
themselves of the privilege. The cabinets were unlocked, so that the party 
could examine the great collection of birds’ skins, which is carefully preserved 
for purposes of reference and record. From time to time also Dr. Bowdler 
Sharpe added to the interest of the meeting by giving lecturettes on the more 
striking of the forms exhibited — for instance, in the case of the paradise birds, 
of which the value and beauty had not perhaps before been fully appreciated by 
many of those present. He spoke also of the fighting quail, of which the female 
is the stronger and more beautiful (this is not a common thing among birds), 
which goes about fighting other hens, while the male carries out the work ot 
incubation. The party was also allowed to see many of the birds’ eggs, and the 
metallic lustre of those of the tinamus came as a surprise to some. 
At the end of the visit a very hearty vote of thanks was accorded to Dr. 
Bowdler Sharpe, who generously offered to devote another afternoon to the 
Society in the near future. 
