196 
MEETING OF NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETIES. 
caused the breaking of the meres ; representations of British fungi, 
skilfully drawn from nature by himself, together with an admirable 
collection of lichens. Mr. George Luff had suspended on one of the 
walls a couple of large maps, drawn on linen, by which he illustrated 
his lecture, illustrating the position of Clun at the extremity of the 
central transverse range of the Cambrian Mountains and the 
mountainous nature of the district which the Clun boulders have 
traversed. Miss Cooper, Claremont Buildings, sent a very handsome 
piece of ancient Gobelins tapestry, whilst Mr. T. it. Blunt exhibited a 
series of views of Shrewsbury and sketches of the interior of the Abbey 
Church by Mr. Henry Blunt, a section of the first Atlantic cable, which 
possessed peculiar interest, a copy of Buddhist Inferno or Purgatory, 
together with an interesting model of a lunar crater and other 
curiosities. Two very skilfully-executed paintings of the interior of 
St. Julian’s Church and Golden Cross Passage, by Mrs. Hay, were lent 
by Mrs. Auden ; whilst on the mantelpiece stood two fine steel-plate 
engravings of Darwin, exhibited by Mr. W. Beacall, and Mr. Shaw also 
showed a painting of the great naturalist. A very fine painting of 
Butcher Bow was shown by Mr. J. Laing, together with a new series 
of etchings of “ Ye Olde Town of Shrewsbury,” a painting of Stokesay 
Castle, of the Court in Butcher Row, and the old Welsh Bridge, 
together with views of other interesting spots in the town. Mr. 
Acherley exhibited a view of St. Alkmond’s Church before the nave 
was taken down, whilst the Rev. D. Phillips Lewis showed several 
Egyptian brass trays, which were masterpieces of engraving, and 
specimens of Chinese fancy work, together with skilfully-inlaid 
Japanese panels, beautifully executed, the flowers being of coloured 
ivory. Mr. Morgan exhibited a magnificent collection of moths and 
butterflies from Berma, whilst Dr. Callaway lent a series of geological 
specimens showing the partial derivation of the Longmynd series from 
a pre-existing volcanic group, &c., being obtained principally from 
Shropshire. Mr. Horace Pearce, F.G.S., Stourbridge, also exhibited 
specimens of rocks from the granite quarries of Aberdeenshire ; and 
the Rev. William Houghton showed specimens of fossils, rocks, and 
shells obtained from Egypt, together with an assortment of dried fungi. 
Mr. Martin J. Hardy, Shrewsbury, exhibited a splendid case of British 
butterflies ; whilst Mr. T. S. Stooke kindly lent a glacier-scratched 
stone obtained from an excavation 15ft. in depth, at Llyn Slygard, 
Rheidol, Plynlimmon, together with cores of sandstone from a bore¬ 
hole in Leicestershire, obtained by the use of a Diamond Rock Boring 
Machine. Mr. Walter Southam sent a very fine specimen of 
the Polyporus sulphurem ; Mr. W. Phillips also supplied a col¬ 
lection of Conferva Mgagropila, and several hedgehogs, or balls 
of pine needles, found in the mere at Ellesmere, and specimens 
of the Polyporus nigrescens and Polyporus rufescens. Mrs. Salt, Council 
House, exhibited a collection of Sikh armour picked up upon the 
field after the battle of Chillianwallah by a Shropshire man. Mr. 
Henry Fenton showed an assortment of fossils of echinus found 
in Sussex chalk, a giant ammonite found in Somerset, together with a 
magnificent crystal of carbonate of soda, and a remarkable specimen 
of potato flint. Major Southam showed a seventeenth century bottle 
found in White Mere, whilst Mr. J. Gray sent fine specimens of Fijian 
war clubs, stone hatchets, fishing hook and stone bait, together with a 
stone bowl found in the Dead Sea. Messrs. J. and B. Blower exhibited 
a series of very old views of Shrewsbury and neighbourhood, and the 
Rev. Canon Butler sent an extensive collection of dried plants. The 
proceedings throughout were of a very agreeable character. 
