AUCKLAND INSTITUTE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XX, Issue 6837, 16 October 1883, Page 3

AUCKLAND INSTITUTE.

The ordinary monthly meeting of members was held yesterday evening, in the Council room of the Museum and Institute building. Mr. Mackcchnie, Vice-President (in the absence of Bishop Cowie) in the chair.—The Secretary (Mr. T. F. Cheeseman) read the list of new members, and of donations to the Library and Museum. New Mejiber.—Mr. J. Pickering, Auckland. Donations to the Library and Museum. —Bramall's "Mineral Resources of Now Zealand, 1 ' the author; American weather reports and charts. Consul G. W. Griffin; new map of Auckland, Mr. S. Percy Smith ; fgg of kiwi, Mr. A. Wellby; specimen of swamp crake, Mr. J. Symons ; specimens of hepialus viresceus, Fijian lizard, Mr. A. Martin ; four large Roman Amphoric, Mr. J. T, Mackelvie; Maori carved stone sinker, Captain Hugh Stewart; old gun barrel picked up on the site of the Wairau massacre (1843), Mr. A. W. Parker; large blook of pumice from Lake Taupo, Mr. L Marchesseau ; specimcn_ of sulphur from Rotorua, Mr, G. M. Main; encrustations from the Rotorua Lake District, Mrs. J. S. Macfarlane. New Zealand Coleoptera.—An abstract of a paper by Captain Broun on this subject was read. In it 19 new species, belonging to seven different families, were fully described. Some particulars were given of the habits and localities of the new species, but the greater portion of the paper dealt with the technical descriptions of the species, and remarks on their relationships with other forms. Polynesia.—Mr, Campbell exhibited a map illustrative of the paper read at the previous meeting by Mr. Moore on Lord Howe's Group and other groups of the Polynesian Islands. He pointed out that the Papuan type, or woolly haired races, had migrated in a particular direction; that the Malay, or "metal working" race, were encroaching on tho Polynesians. He cited an opinion of Professor Haeckel that there was at one time a large area of land which he called "Amuria," that had submerged, and the Andaman Islands were remnants of this submerged liud. He paid a compliment to the general merit of Mr. Moore's paper, and hoped that he would soon writo' another paper on this interesting subject.—Mr. Moore replied to the effect that.the scope of his paper was not. exactly what had been described by Mr. Campbell. He believed that the hypothesis of Professor Haeckel, that there was a now submerged land called "Amuria," had been exploded.

The SrELL op the Supernatural.—Mr. Mackeehnie read his paper on this subject. He said it would perhaps be more convenient if the discussions upon Mr. Campbell's paper, entitled " Psychological Investigations," and the one now read by himself should be taken together. In all ages of the world the teDdoncy to an unreasoning credulity bad been observed by those who were attentive to the workings of the human mind. Witchcraft, necromancy, and in later times clairvoyance, mesmerism, and spiritualism afforded abundant proof of the delusions to which the human mind was subject. The literary form which this human tendency exhibited was well illustrated by the poets and writers of fiction. Shakespeare had created a vast number of spiritual and ghostly forms. Most of the works of Sir Walter Scott were redolent of this spiritual element. Bulwor dealt with the same clement, but in his works the spiritual and ghost-like forms were more modern. (The paper cited largely from all the above authors.) There was a very largo number of persons who mnst, from their organization, submit to ideal forms, which have for them all tho reality of fact. Swedenborg and Edward Irving were quoted as men of a high order of minds, but whose minds became overthrown by the overriding power of this tendency to hallucination. From tho writers, such as Dr. Forbes, Winslow, and others of like eminence, it eould be seen how narrow was the boundary between sanity and insanity, and minds which indulged in ideal realisations of spiritual possibilities, occupied a place very near the debateable, if they did not overstep it. There was reason to believe that, such minds were either ill-constituted, or imperfootly constituted, or that they were enfeebled by disease, or that by constant indulgence in hallucination, they had become to degenerated that they would be prepared, on but very slight, certainly upon insufficient evidence, to believe in Mumbo-Jumbo, or the fetish of the African, and that when a mind had descended to this level it was scarcely ever possible to emancipate it from "the spell of tho supernatural."—Mr. Pond regretted that Mr. Campbell's paper had been brought before that socioty, which was scarcely the arena for such a subject. He thought that Mr. Campbell's papers, both in respect to method and substance, was one of that debateable kind' which, like discussion upon a religious subject, did not admit of inference and demonstration from observed facts, and consequently would bo interminable if once they became the ordinary topics for consideration. Mr. Pond pointed out some matters in Mr. Campbell's paper which wore incapable of proof, others which were absurd or impossible, Tho person suffering from delirium tremens suffered from real spirits, seen and felt not from without but from within. The number and variety of the states of mind of the occasions which conjured up ghosts of all kinds could not bo estimated. Mr. Pond told a story of a hard-headed Scotchman who ran away from a ghost which seemed a real spirit to him, but which proved on examination to be a clay bank with a piecc of newspaper on the top of it that was being swayed to a fro by the wind. (Laughter.)— Mr, Josiah Martin also expressed regret that Mr. Campbell should have brought his paper before the Institute. He agreed that it waß not a paper suited to the character of the discussions of such a society. It was made up almost wholly of quoted matter ; and such evidence as it professed to contain was not the observation of the writer, but tho emanation of other minds. He thought the address of Mr. Pond, just delivered, erred in tho name way. But the criticism of Mr. Pond was otherwise justified.—Mr. Campbell, in reply, sdid he was prepared for some opposition. But some of the speakers afforded proof that they did not understand his paper. Ho doubted whether they understood the subject.' Mr. iCampbell expreased hia astonishment that Mr. Maekechnie could have written such a paper. He combattcd the views of Mr. Pond and Mr, Martin. Ho considered that some people who endeavoured to make others appear ridiculous only brought ridiculo on themselves.—Mr. Mackechnie regrotted that Mr. Campbell did not agree with his paper. It was not to be expected that he should after describing a class of pcrsouß who stood so near the narrow boundary line of insanity. He must therefore leave Mr. Campbell's paper without further comment.