ANNUAL MEETING. 
149 
he be in one of the biological laboratories. With reference to 
the controversy about women wearing feathers, he had been in 
South Africa and seen the ostrich farms, and he could assure the 
ladies present that no cruelty was attached to this trade. The 
feathers were carefully cut off, and if they were not thus cut the 
quills were shed in the ordinary course of nature when the bird 
moulted its feathers. With reference to the Chairman’s discourse 
about eels, the eel was somewhat like a rabbit, since it had a 
burrow, and also somewhat like a bear in that it laid on a large 
amount of fat before hybernating till the spring. He had taken 
eels in this state in the middle of winter which, although in this 
lethargic state, were very excellent eating. In South Africa the 
birds and flowers were very beautiful, but, with few exceptions, 
they had no song or smell ; and Mr. Rhodes had been a true Selbor- 
nian in that part of the world, for he had imported various kinds 
of singing birds. These had been placed on his estate and now 
thrived well, so that both the thrush and blackbird could now 
be heard within a few miles of Cape Town. Referring to oysters 
and their life history, the greatest foe to young oysters was the 
prawn, and many persons who did not like oysters would eat 
prawns, which were only concentrated oysters. The two great 
objects for which the Society was established was the cultivation 
of the habit of accurate observation, and the education of all 
classes of the people of this country to understand and respect 
nature. 
Mr. R. Marshman Wattson said that a good deal of the work 
was done by the branches, of which there were about thirty-five, 
and it was to the branches that the Society looked, as the work 
to be done was often of a local character, in addition to which 
the branches took the subscriptions, as, according to the rules, 
they were not compelled to pay more than 10 per cent, of their 
gross receipts to the head-quarters, and often the Society did 
not get that ; in fact, if all the payments due from the branches 
had been made, the Financial Report would have been very 
different. He thought the Society started with too many irons 
in the fire, and as there were now separate societies for carrying 
out some of the objects they originally had in view, we should 
devote our attention more to the study of living nature after the 
manner of Gilbert White. As for the prevention of the destruc- 
tion of birds for their plumage, he had already given that up as 
hopeless, for in spite of all that had been written and spoken 
on the subject, he saw some eleven or twelve in that room 
wearing “osprey” feathers. 
Professor Hulme, in proposing a vote of thanks to the 
chairman, said it was impossible to teach the children unless 
they had some one competent to do so. They must educate the 
teachers, for it seemed that unless she or he had the knowledge 
of nature born in them the present training would fail to give the 
necessary stimulus. Education would have to be carried a long 
way. He knew a lady who had a habit somewhat anti-Selbornian, 
