10 
THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION AT CARDIFF. 
Jan., 1892. 
NOTES AT THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION, 
CARDIFF, 1891.* 
BY C. J. WATSON. 
It is the custom of the British Association to invite local 
scientific societies to send each a delegate to their meetings, 
in order that they may there, in conference, make suggestions 
to its council, and afterwards convey to their respective 
societies instructions on points concerning which their co¬ 
operation is required. This society, however, does not send a 
representative, because it does not publish reports of its pro¬ 
ceedings, which is made a condition of its recognition by the 
Association. It has occurred to me that, even without this 
official sanction, one of the duties of representatives, and that 
not an unimportant one, might be discharged by any or all 
of our members who might attend its meetings. I mean 
that they should take notes of any new or interesting 
scientific fact brought under their notice, and on their return 
freely communicate the same to those of their fellow 
members who, from want of leisure or other causes, are 
unable to go to the meetings. Unfortunately this idea did 
not occur to me until I received the usual modest request 
from our secretary for a paper. The consequence has been, 
that I did not put down my notes at the time in writing, 
and, as a natural result, many of the observations that I wish 
I could recall, both for my own sake as well as for yours, 
have faded away from my memory beyond the possibility of 
recall. And here I would remark that there is no surer way 
of giving precision to our understanding of a subject, and of 
fixing it in one’s memory, than to undertake the responsibility 
of imparting it to others. It is in this lies the great value 
to our members of the delivery of papers at intervals to their 
fellow members. If you only realised this as you ough t, you 
would come forward in such numbers that the official life of 
our secretary would, instead of being one of constant worry 
and anxiety, be pervaded with an endless glow of satisfaction 
and happiness. 
Without farther remarks I will proceed with the subject 
of my paper, but if my notes should appear to you 
fragmentary and disjointed, I trust that you will attri¬ 
bute it to the cause which I have named, and which I 
will endeavour to prevent from operating on a future 
occasion. The meeting place for this year was the rapidly 
*Read before the Birmingham and Midland Institute Scientific 
Society, November 4th, 1891. 
