PROCEEDINGS 
AT THE 
FIFTH ANNUAL MEETING, 
Held February 22 tid, 1867, 
His Excellency the Hon. Sik J. H. T. Mannebs Sutton, K.C.B., 
IN THE ChAIB. 
His Excellency, on taking the chair, remarked that he would 
have felt great hesitation in accepting the invitation of the Society to 
preside at the meeting, involving as that acceptance did, the neces¬ 
sity of making a speech, had he not known that few remarks only 
would be expected from him on the subject of acclimatisation. 
During the last twelve or thirteen years his travels had embraced a 
great variety of countries and climates ; but extensive as his experi¬ 
ence iu that respect had been, it was clear that that experience could be 
of very little value to the Acclimatisat ion Society of Victoria, because, 
although in North America, where he was resident for a number of 
years, he could point out a great number of animals and trees which 
could not live in Victoria, the variatioas of temperature there were 
so great, that he could not point out many valuable animals or trees 
which would be likely to succeed here. Again, with regard to the 
West Indies, owing to there being scarely any change of tempera¬ 
ture throughout the year, the number of trees and animals which 
could be introduced thence into this colony must necessarily be 
small. That being the case, if he were to extend these remarks to 
any great length, he should place both himself and the meeting in a 
very embarrassing position ; for they would either have to listen to 
platitudes which it would be very disagreeable for them to hear and 
for him to utter, or he should be reduced to the alternative of attempt¬ 
ing to give instruction to men who knew more about such matters 
than he did himself. But, at t he same time, he was anxious to ex¬ 
press his hearty and thorough recognition of the great public import¬ 
ance of the objects for the attainment of which this Society had 
been formed, and also his hearty recognition of the energy, skill, and 
success which the Society had pursued these objects. It would not, 
of course, be right for him to forestall the report, but there were one 
or two points upon which he should like to make a few remarks. In 
I 
