THE OTAGO INSTITUTE

Evening Star, Issue 14532, 7 December 1910, Page 8

THE OTAGO INSTITUTE

felr^MsniborS"©* &«■ $$P|T" soeetrog \trf- evening. Professor Waters |-M ■ piSSed over a. good attendance. -' -;\ A ewunanicataoa was seceiyed -from the S ~-4 - *"ttajtti6tor« *of a Captain Cook Memorial *h TiftNt""- -The circular stated that F,''**iprary representative and influential com- /,•>■ ..mtttee had been formed, under the auspices *. iaw the British Empire League, to carry out •^'the proposal made by Sir Joseph Carv ~ ytrthers, S.CJkIiG-, ex-Premier of N.S.W. ." " "the circular continued: "It is felt to be wrong that Australian and New Zealand people -waiting the,capital of the Empire should find there no memorial of the present greatness of their States. It is a re•proach to the nation that no recognition should have been paid to the memory of a man whoee enterprise in exploration resulted in each notable additions to the Britfch Dominions,' and whoso scientific ' TKnk has been of the greatest value to nsan- . irnd.** The Committee'e proposal was that a memorial by a sculptor of repute should "be-erected in the best available position m 's» centre of London. For the purpose at least. £3,000 -would be required. Nearly "one-fibird of that amount had been subscribed by members of the Committee. - The- Chairman said he thought it only proper that the Institute should vote an amount-—On the motion of Mr J. C. Thomson it was resolved to vote sgs. Dr Ranterm exhibited a Maori greenstone v -weapon (axe shape) which had been unmv «gecl excavations by the Drainage Board -workers at. the corner of Leith ;;nd . TJanovw streets. He 6aid that the axe was really the property of the Drainage Board. bat that body had very kindly handod it over to tho Museum authorities. The speaker thought that that body showed a feiy fine public spirit.—(Applause.) Dr Marshall was elected a substitute governor to take the place of Mr (!. M. Thomson, MJP., who will probably bo absent during the incoming year. Two-new members were elected. ! THE ANNUAL MEETINU.

At the conclusion of the ordinary m.retjngthe annual meeting of the Institute was held, Professor Waters being chamtMn. The balance-sheet showed a kiJa.nct: m hand of £55 lis Bd. lloceipts totalled £2OB 8s 9d, and expenditure was set down at £l4B 7a Id. The Secretary's (Dr Fulton) annual re- ' port stated inter alia lhat the Council moperated with the Canterbury Philosophical Institate in sending an emphatic yrotesL to the Prime Minister against the dctfruction of seals on the outlying southern islands. He promised that the matter would have his attention in due course.. A vacancy_on the roll oi honorary members of the New ■Zealand Council was filled by the election of the nominee of the Otago Council—Sir "John Murray. The Council otic red three prizes of half, a guinea each to the primary schools of Otago for the beat naturalists' calendar, the best collection of insects, and the best collection of plants. The awards had not yet been made. £25 had been donated to the Hocken memorial fund, and an unsuccessful effort made to induce affiliated societies to support it. Having considered the amendments in the -Animals' Protection Act submitted by the Cantorbury Philosophical Institute, and having found them satisfactory, the Council sent word of their willingness to act with them J in 105012 the Government to accept the amendments. During the year tii© Conned communicated with the Southland Land Board and the Minister of Lards protesting against the re-lease of the Auckland Islands to a whaling enterprise, on the grounds that 6och enterprise w.is very destructive to the flora and fauna of the islands- A satisfactory assurance was received from the Minister that Adams Island would be set apart as a reserve, and that every endeavor would be made to preserve the flora and fauna on the most important areas of the islands. Viewing with regret the great destruction of penguins »ndsea elephants'on the Macquaries, your Council sent representations to local members of Parliament, the Prime Minister. and others, protesting against this, and asking for protection of the animals men tioned Unfortunately, these islands are under the jurisdiction oE Tasmania, and the New Zealand Government declined to interfere. Correspondence also took place between your Council and the Tasmaniau Government and several scientific societies in Tasmania and Australia. Unfortunately, your Council have no means of ■proving the amount of destruction or the actual decrease of these interesting animals beyond hearsay, and the Government of Tasmania seem disposed to grant % re-lease to the owner of the oil industry oa the islands, Mr Hatch, who flatly contradicts our statements as to the damage done. Recognising the need for expert advice in dealing with the subject of afforestation in New Zealand, the Council sent a strong letter to the Prime Minister urging snch an appointment. The Prime Minister, however, assured us that the Government had at their disposal at the present time several highly-trained experts, and did not consider any further appointment necessary. Dr Pitch'': t was appointed a member of Council. vice Dr Malcolm, resigned. Mr Alex. Bathgate i\-a: appointed vice-president, vice Dr Hocken, deceased, and Mr E. J. Parr was appointed to a vacancy 00 the Council. Papers and addresses have been given by the president. Professor Waters, Professor Marshall. Professor Park, Dr Fulton, and Mr P. W. Payne, and a number of technical aiuT seieniilie papers have been read and placed upon the table for publication in the 'Transactions.' . . . Many interesting exhibits have been shown by Professor Waters, Dr Benham, Mr George Howes, Professor Park, Professor Marshall, and others. Soring the current session thirteen new members joined the Institute, two-resigned. and one—our lamented vice-president, Dr Hocken —was taken by death. The membership was now 134, an increase of ten over last year's roll. A large number of books and periodicals had been added to the library during tiie current year. The ■Council and members desire to thank those ladies who had been kind enough to pro -yido and superintend the distribution of ■ refreshments at meetings. Thanks were due to the Otago Employers' Association ,i for kindly allowing the Council to hold •its meetings in its board room." A report by the hou. librarian was also read. This showed that more books than usual had been received dining the year. '* partly through generous donations from the late Dr Hocken, and partly owing to the number of purchases of zoological Works made in accordance with the agreement to specialise on general zoology and geology. The existing shelves were nearly rail, and accommodation was now a vital /matter. A judicious culling out of old, f out-of-date works should be undertaken .this summer. The Chairman's remarks were brief. The '.outstanding feature was his reference to ithe recently-formed Otago Astronomical jSociety. He thought it wa3 a great pity (that snch a society had been formed. [Their own Institute really covered astmaiomical work, and it was uuite able to do so- Members had the right to submit questions on astronomical matters. In a. comparatively small city like Dunediii there was really not enough'room for the two societies. Referring to the work of the Institute, the Chairman said that the institute had been alive to the interests of science and other matters affecting New .'.Zealand and elsewhere. He moved the adoption of the report and balance-sheet. Dr Benham seconded tho motion, which was carried unanimously. The following office-bearers were elected Jar the ensuing year:—President, Mr A. Bathgate; vice-presidents, Professor .Waters and Professor Benham; hon. secretary, Mr E. J. Parr; hon. treasurer, Mr /N. Feb; hon. librarian, Dr Benham; lion, auditor, Mr D. Brent; council—Mr ~ W. Statham, Dr Fulton, Mr J. C. Thom--<s son, Dr Allan, Dr Marshall, Mr CL M. , IThomson, Dr Malcolm.