GUPPY — VICTORIA INSTITUTE, ETC. 
175 
The first issue of publications I have now described when 
collected was entitled “ The Transactions of the Scientific Associ- 
ation of Trinidad, 1863-66.” It contained in all 91 pages of 
matter with Title and Table of Contents. Besides this there was 
published separately a paper by Herman Cruger “ On the 
Meteorology of Trinidad.” This contained 22 pages besides a 
Table and four Diagrams. 
In 1866 the Association decided to print its proceedings in 
a more regular form and for a time the issues appeared with 
moderate regularity. Among the practical papers included in 
the first volume (446 pages including Index with Title and 
Contents) were contributions by Henry Mitchell on Sulphites (2 
papers) on Earth Closets, on the Breeding and Rearing of Horses 
and on the manufacture of Sugar (2 papers) : a most important 
one by Dr. de Yerteuilon the Town of Port-of -Spain : interesting 
papers by Richard Hill on Poisonous Fishes and on Fish 
Poisons. Mr. Prestoa’s Catalogue of Plants was herein published. 
Great delay and trouble attended the publication of that paper. 
A number of other papers also appeared in this volume, some of 
much interest but, I have not the opportunity now to particularize 
them. My own contributions included several on the Natural 
History of the Island and one on the Trinidad Public Library 
which I shall refer to more particularly in the course of this 
paper. My paper on Dominica though not exhaustive or pro- 
found excited some little interest and there was for a time a 
demand for copies of the part in which it appeared. My papers 
on the Geology of Trinidad though crude and imperfect contain 
notices of phenomena of which the great economic importance 
will some day be recognized. 
The second volume of the proceedings begun with Part IX. 
December, 1872. Unfortunately the publications of the Associ- 
ation came to an end with the twelfth part published at the end 
of 1881. The chief burden of carrying on the business of the 
Association fell upon me and owing to the increasing work of my 
Office, my absences from the Island, my frequent ill-health and 
failing energy I had to resign first the Secretaryship and after- 
wards the Editorship, whereon the publications ceased to appear. 
Papers were however read at the meetings and one or two of my 
own afterwards appeared in print. The most notable of these was 
a paper on the Water-bearing Capacities of the Rocks of Trinidad 
published in the Agricultural Record. 
The papers on practical subjects contained in the four parts 
issued of the second volume of the Proceedings were (among 
