Microscopical Society of Victoria. 
33 
ANNUAL ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT, 
Thomas Shearman Ralph, M.R.C.S. Eng. 
Assoc. Linn. Soc. Lon. 
[Delivered to the Members at the Annual Meeting, held on the 
30th October, 1879.] 
^Gentlemen of tue Microscopical Society of Victoria, 
Again the duty of addressing you lias devolved upon me at 
the end of this another year of our existence and work as a society ; 
and as it is usual on such occasions, I am called on to take a 
retrospect of our proceedings, and set before you our present status 
and probable future ; and in so doing I shall endeavour to point 
out what may be well for us to know, i.e. some of the leading 
facts connected with work done by kindred societies. 
Since our last annual meeting here, we have held ten general or 
ordinary meetings of the society, in which various papers and 
notices have been read, and after which the evenings have 
terminated in the production and exhibition of some interesting 
and instructive objects. 
The following is a list of the principal communications which 
have been read :—A paper by Mr. Clias. Maplestone on Polyzoa, 
“ What they are, their classification and position in the animal 
kingdom.” Mr. Barnard gave us a paper on two new species of 
freshwater Polyzoa, and exhibited living specimens of Plumatella mid 
Fredricella. Mr. Goldstein, our honorary secretary, furnished us 
with notes on living marine Polyzoa observed by him at Portland, 
and he described some twenty species. In January last we received 
a communication from the Council of the International Juvenile 
Exhibition, Melbourne, requesting our co-operation, which was 
replied to on our part by offering two prizes for the best collection 
of microscopical objects of Australia and New Zealand properly 
prepared and mounted; the competitors being from 15 to 21 years 
for the higher, and under 15 for the lesser prize. Mr. James 
Dawson sent some specimens of a singular form of insect egg for 
determination. The notes for these, I believe, are forthcoming to 
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