196 MIDLAND UNION OF NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETIES. SEPT., 1892. 
of the Union in collecting and publishing the results of such 
local research, not only for the sake of preserving much 
valuable scientific knowledge, that would otherwise be lost, 
but also for the sake of increasing the interest of all our 
members in such scientific work. 
It is evident that unless the honorary secretaries and 
members of the more active societies are willing to give help 
in various ways, and unless the honorary secretaries and the 
members of the less active societies are willing to put them¬ 
selves in the way of receiving that help, the Midland Union, 
however perfect its organisation, is powerless to perform the 
work which it is able and willing to do. 
Members of the Union are all, more or less, engaged in 
researches in which they want assistance from each other. 
For instance, it often happens that some member has an 
extensive local knowledge of his own district, which would be 
of immense assistance to other members who are working 
up the geology, flora, or fauna of some distant district which 
presents the same general features. Let members assist each 
other, and so further the great aim of knowing more about 
our world from a scientific point of view. There is no lack 
of questions which require investigation. The only difficulty 
is to get sufficient and willing helpers. The Darwin medal 
and the proposed Ray medals are offered to encourage 
members to undertake scientific research, and it is hoped that 
the medium of inter-communication afforded by the proposed 
record of scientific facts, will materially help to place the 
Union in a prominent position in the scientific world of which 
its members may feel proud. 
The short papers which are asked for need not neces¬ 
sarily deal exclusively with original scientific observations— 
most valuable though these be ; there is another most valu¬ 
able class of papers, viz., short reviews and summaries of 
papers bearing upon the Midlands, which have appeared in 
other periodicals. In this way the more leisured of our 
members can contribute to the scientific needs and increase 
the scientific enjoyment of those with less leisure. In this, 
and many ways, it is in the power of the members of this 
Union to make the Midland Union and its journal an impor¬ 
tant factor in the advancement of science in England, and 
your Council commends with confidence this appeal for 
increased support to all members of the Union. 
BRITISH ASSOCIATION. 
The following report has been received from the delegate 
of this Council to the meeting of the Corresponding Societies’ 
Committee of the British Association: — 
Your representative upon the Corresponding Societies’ 
