Vol. XXIV. -| 
1925. J 
A r otes and Comments 
239 
area larger than some of the existing States of the Common¬ 
wealth, and its inhabitants undoubtedly appreciated the recogni¬ 
tion shown by the Union of the importance of their city. A civic 
reception was accorded to members on their arrival, and subse¬ 
quently they were entertained by the Mayor in the city’s botanic- 
gardens. 
The fact that the city was smaller than those in which previous 
meetings have been held made it possible to arrange numerous 
short excursions to localities in the neighbourhood where plenty 
of birds were to be seen. Most of the localities thus visited dur¬ 
ing the Congress were bird sanctuaries, many of which owe their 
existence to the very active Central Queensland Native Birds Pro¬ 
tection Association, an admirable Rockhampton organisation 
which might well serve as a pattern to bird-lovers and sportsmen 
in other centres. 
In the third place, the camp at Byfield was in a locality which 
had never previously been visited by ornithologists. Those who 
took part had no idea what birds they would find there, and the 
exploration of the scrubs of the Byfield district, as well as the 
visit to North Keppel Island, broke entirely new ground and 
added considerably to our knowledge of the distribution of Aus¬ 
tralian birds. 
I he Congress was noteworthy also in that it marked the re¬ 
tirement from the presidency and from the editorship of 7'he 
Emu of Dr. J. A. Leach, who as vice-president and later as 
president has been chairman of most of the Union’s meetings 
for many years past, and whose editorial connection with this 
journal has lasted for over ten years. Members accorded him 
the highest honour in their power by unanimously electing him 
an Honorary Member of the Union. 
It was singularly unfortunate that the editor and the assistant 
editor of 7 he Emu found it necessary at the same time to re¬ 
sign on account of the pressure of other duties. The new editors, 
who have taken over the work at short notice and without pre¬ 
vious experience, trust that members of the Union will treat any 
faults they may discover with the indulgence usually granted 
to beginners. Criticism or comments will be welcomed, and it 
is hoped that with the aid of the printing committee and advice 
from members generally, the magazine may continue to retain 
its high standard, and that members of the R.A.O.U. will still 
be able to take a pride in their journal. 
In view of the discussion on the International Museum of 
Comparative Ooology which took place at the recent Congress, 
and the resolution as to that organisation which was carried 
{ante p. 196), members will read with interest the following para¬ 
graph which appeared in Nature, the leading English scientific 
journal, on September 13th, 1924:— 
