Read, first, a Memoir "On the Muscles of the Larvæ of several species of Tipulida;" by John Lubbock, Esq., F.L.S. (See "Transactions," vol. xxii. p. 173.) Read, secondly, a "Note on the genus Hemigymnia, Griffith;" by Thomas Thomson, Esq., M.D., F.R.S., F.L.S. (See "Botanical Proceedings," vol. ii. p. 126.) Read, thirdly, a Paper "On the probable Metamorphoses of Pedicularia and other genera of Gasteropoda;" by J. D. M'Donald, Esq., R.N. Communicated by George Busk, Esq., F.R.S., Zool. Sec. L.S. (See "Transactions," vol. xxii. p. .) Read, fourthly, a "Monograph of the Eucalypti of Tropical Australia;" by Ferdinand Müller, Ph.D. Communicated by Dr. Hooker, V.P.R.S., F.L.S. (See "Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 81.) Read, fifthly, a Paper "On the Anatomy of Eurybia Gaudichaudi, as bearing on the position of the Pteropoda;" by J. D. M'Donald, Esq., R.N. Communicated by the Zoological Secretary. (See "Transactions," vol. xxii. p. .) March 4th, 1858. J. D. Hooker, Esq., Member of Council, in the Chair. Mr. Allan Black was elected an Associate. Mr. Ward, F.R.S., presented specimens of White or Fat Turf from the Island of Valentia in the west of Ireland; and a letter was read addressed to Mr. Ward by Dr. Lecky, giving some account of the substance. Read, first, a Note " On Pseudocentrum, a new genus of Orchidacea from Peru;" by Professor Lindley, F.R.S., F.L.S. (See “Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 63.) Read, secondly, a second part of Professor Lindley's "Contributions to the Orchidology of India." (See "Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 1.) Read, thirdly, a Memoir "On the Tribe Legnotidea;" by George Bentham, Esq., F.L.S. (See "Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 65.) Read, fourthly, a "Synopsis of the Fructification of the compound Sphæric of the Hookerian Herbarium;" by Frederick Currey, Esq., F.L.S. (See "Transactions," vol. xxii. p. .) March 18th, 1858. Thomas Bell, Esq., President, in the Chair. John Cockle, Esq., M.D., and William Hitchman, Esq., M.D., were elected Fellows. Among the presents was a cast of a Bust of the late Dr. Pereira, F.R.S., F.L.S., presented by Mrs. Pereira, to whom the cordial thanks of the Society were voted for her very acceptable present. Read, first, "Contributions to the Anatomy and Natural History of the Cetacea;" by Robert Knox, M.D., F.R.S.E. municated by the Secretary. (See "Zoological Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 63.) Read, secondly, "A Note on the genus Abuta;" by N. Grisebach, Professor of Botany in the University of Göttingen. Communicated by Dr. Hooker, F.L.S. (See "Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 108.) April 1st, 1858. Thomas Bell, Esq., President, in the Chair. Robert W. Hall, Esq., was elected a Fellow. Mr. Bentham, F.L.S., exhibited specimens of Asteranthos, Desf., collected by Mr. Spruce on the Rio Negro in Northern Brazil, and read some observations on its history and affinities. (See "Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 80.) Read, "Contributions to Organographic Botany;" by Christopher Dresser, Esq. Communicated by the Secretary. April 15th, 1858. Thomas Bell, Esq., President, in the Chair. William Frederick Saunders, Esq., was elected a Fellow. Read, first, a “Catalogue of Hymenopterous Insects, collected at Celebes by Mr. A. R. Wallace;" by Frederick Smith, Esq. Communicated by W. W. Saunders, Esq., V.P.L.S. (See "Zoological Proceedings,” vol. iii. p. 4.) Read, secondly, a Paper " On some tuberiform Vegetable Productions from China;" by the Rev. M. J. Berkeley, M.A., F.L.S. (See "Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 102.) Read, thirdly, "Notes on Arctic Plants;" by George Dickie, M.D., A.L.S., Prof. Nat. Hist. Queen's Coll. Belfast. "Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 109.) (See May 6th, 1858. Thomas Bell, Esq., President, in the Chair. Eardley G. Culling Eardley, Esq., was elected a Fellow; and Professor Albert Kolliker, and Professor Karl Theodor Ernest von Siebold, were elected Foreign Members. S. James A. Salter, Esq., F.L.S., exhibited a living specimen of a species of Rat, frequently observed of late on board of vessels in British ports, and made some observations on the characters by which it is distinguished from the original British Rat (Mus Rattus, L.). Read, first, "Contributiones ad Acaciarum Australiæ cognitionem;" by Dr. Ferdinand Müller. Communicated by George Bentham, Esq., F.L.S. (See " Botanical Proceedings,” vol. iii. p. .) Read, secondly, a Note "On a new species of Bellevalia from Mount Ida;" by Maxwell T. Masters, Esq. Communicated by the Secretary. (See "Botanical Proceedings," vol. iii. p. 113.) Read, thirdly, an "Enumeration of the Mosses of India;" by William Mitten, A.L.S. (See "Botanical Proceedings," Supplement for 1858.) May 24th, 1858. Anniversary Meeting. Thomas Bell, Esq., President, in the Chair. This day, the Anniversary of the birth of Linnæus, and the day appointed by the Charter for the Election of Council and Officers, the President opened the business of the Meeting with the following Address : - GENTLEMEN, WHEN I first ventured to break through the previous custom of the Society, by offering an address to the Fellows at the Anniversary, I felt that I must not depend upon always finding, in the annual retrospect of our own doings, sufficient subject for the occupation and amusement of the time allotted to that object. On one or two former occasions I had indeed many circumstances of interest to communicate to you, relative to our removal to the place of what I trust may prove our permanent abode, and I last year took the advantage which that event offered me, of adverting to the foundation, development and results of our Society. As long as our circumstances were changing and our final destiny was in abeyance or suspense, there were subjects constantly presenting themselves sufficiently interesting to occupy a due portion of the time which intervenes between the initiatory routine of the day's business, and the final ceremony of the opening of the ballot glasses. But the very settlement of our difficulties, and the solution of our doubts, whilst filling us with the happy sense of the fruition of our hopes and wishes, deprive me of such themes for my address, and throw me again upon the consideration of some of those means of increasing the prosperity and thus extending the usefulness of our Society, which are indicated by daily experience, and the ever-changing and progressing march of natural knowledge. When I last addressed you on a similar occasion to the present, we had just entered upon the occupation of our new abode. We could not then consider ourselves settled, scarcely even secure ; but a twelvemonth's occupancy has now removed all doubt of the absolute enjoyment of the advantages which we then only believed in, and might almost tempt us to yield to a feeling of quiet and satisfied security, and to adopt the sentiment of the Poet, "Invenimus portum; spes et fortuna, valete!" But if any such feeling of finality in our labours could ever enter the mind or pervade the feelings of the Society, surely nothing could be more entirely misplaced, nothing more calculated to interfere with the fulfilment of our great mission, and to paralyse those efforts without which we must fail in carrying out the objects of our corporate existence. It is, indeed, in our present improved condition, with an increased income, enlarged communication with the scientific world, and a closer association with other scientific bodies, employed like ourselves zealously and constantly in the advancement of knowledge, with responsibilities increased in proportion to our means and the requirements of scientific progress,-that we ought to recognize an irresistible claim upon our energies, and fresh inducements to enter, with all our powers, and with all the zeal which so noble an object demands, upon the fulfilment of the duties which are imposed upon us, and which we have solemnly accepted as our own. That it is unnecessary, however, to employ any argument to remind the Society of those duties, or to stimulate it to their fulfilment, is proved by the state of activity and vigour by which it is at present characterized. The number and importance of the communications which have occupied our ordinary meetings, where we have no longer the necessity of listening to, or (proh pudor!) of nodding over the fortunately interminable commentary on the Hortus Malabaricus, which served for so many years as a pièce de résistance, not to say a stop-gap, to prevent the formal exposé of our occasional literary bankruptcy, these circumstances, with the usually satisfactory attendance at our meetings, show a degree of active vitality which is at once a cause of thankful satisfaction and of hopeful anticipation. With reference to the latter portion of our functions, there is, however, one point which calls for observation, and has been a source of great regret. I alluded to it at the last Anniversary, and made some observations upon the subject, to which I am sorry to have again to recur. I mean the comparative paucity of zoological communications when contrasted with the number and extent of those devoted to the sister science. The high character of many of those zoological papers which we have received, does not render it less a matter for serious consideration, whether some plan might not be adopted to effect an improvement in so important an element of our functions. That the principal cause of the deficiency is to be sought in the same direction as that to which I pointed on the former occasion, can |