SECRETARIES’ REPORT. 161 
The Conversazione at the commencement of the Session was 
held as usual; but there was no special novelty in it. Mr. Hall 
was employed in collecting and hanging pictures, and did his best. 
The members of the Plymouth Fine Art Club, desiring to show 
their interest in the welfare of our Society, suggested that another 
should be held at Christmas, conducted by themselves, aided by a 
few of our members. It was illustrated by an exhibition showing 
the various phases of art study, from the first thought to the 
finished work. It also embraced a large variety of outline, fore- 
ground objects, figures, &ec. 
A short paper was read by the President of the Club on some 
of the greater interpreters of nature, dwelling especially on Turner 
and David Cox. 
The exhibition was kept open on the two following days, and 
was visited by many of the inhabitants of the town. 
But this Conversazione must be regarded as supplementary to 
that of our society. The members of the Club will be always 
ready to do their utmost to help; but at present they are hardly 
strong enough to repeat it on their own account twice in a year. 
The Curator of the Library states that we are indebted to one 
of our members, Mr. J. Brooking Rowe, for a copy of the short lived 
local serial, ‘Clack ”—a work already scarce, though published only 
in 1865—and for some extremely interesting Tracts, issued during 
the struggle between Charles and the Parliament. Dr. Jago has 
presented 4 parts (bound in 2) of Howard’s ‘“‘ Barometrographia,” 
which have an additional interest from their having been presented 
by the author to the late Sir William Snow Harris. Mr. Richard 
Edmonds has kindly given copies of two pamphlets by himself, 
one on “The Name Britain and the Pheenicians,” the other on 
‘Recent Extraordinary Oscillations in the Waters of Lake Ontario ;” 
and Dr. Merrifield for elaborate printed weather returns. 
The following Reports, &c., have been received from the respec- 
tive societies—“ British Association,. 1873 ;” ‘Quarterly Journal 
of the Geological Society,” Nos. 118, 119, 120, 121; “Journal of 
the Royal Geological Society of Ireland,” vol. iv. part 1, new series ; 
“Proceedings of the London Zoological Society,” parts 1, 2, 3, 
1874; “ Proceedings of the Literary and Philosophical Society of 
Liverpool,” No. 28; ‘Memoirs of the Literary and Philosophical 
Society of Manchester,” vol. iv. part 3, and several vols. of ‘‘ Pro- 
