The Sun.
London, England, 1858-09-30 00:00:00

THE CONCLUDING MEETING.

The concluding general meeting was held in the
large. room of the Town-hall at 3 o'clock this (Wed-
nesday) afternoon. There was a numerous attend—
ance of ladies and gentlemen. Professor Owen, the
President of the Association, presided, and on the
platform also were many of the distinguished men
who have taken part in the various gatherings
which have been held under tho society's auspices
during the last few days.
Professor OWEN commenced the proceedings, by
calling upon
Major-General SABINE, who stated the various
steps which had been taken by the Executive Com-
mittee for securing and advancing the interests of
science during the next 12 months. They were
divided into two heads—first, resolutions which re-
quired no grants of money to carry them out ; and
second, those which did require grants of money.
Under the first head it had been decided, among
other things, that application should be made to the
Sardinian Government for obtaining additional fa-
cilities for scientific men to pursue their researches
eornttnitee
on the summit of the Alps ; to appoint
to take steps for improving the patent system of this
country, and securing a better reward to meritori-
ous inventors ; and to appoint a committee to corn_
municate with the Board of Trade for making
oceanic observations ; to take steps for making
magnetic and other observations in various parts of
the world ; to request the attention of the Lords of
the Admiralty to the importance of authorising
further research on the depth, temperature, &c., of
the sea, with especial reference to communications
with distant shores by means of submarine tele-
graphs; and to endeavour to obtain greater facili-
ties for promoting geographical investigations.
Those resolutions which had grants of money at-
tached to them included the following, the aggre-
gate amount granted being £1,265 :-50 to endea-
vour to obtain an act of Parliament to appoint new
trustees of the property of scientific institutions ;
L5OO for maintaining the establishment of the Kew
Observatory; and £2OO-- to -Prof. Wilson, of the
Melbourne University, in aid of his proposed scheme

for establishing a - reflecting telescope for observa-
tion of the southern nebulae, on the understanding
that the local Government defray the remaining
cost. The othcr grants consisted of various smaller
sums for the purpose of enabling different scientific
men to make researches in furtherance of the re-
spective branches of science to which they have
devoted themselves, and to continue the system
of dredging the coast to obtain specimens of various
marine animals which has been for some years pur-
sued by several gentlemen under the auspices of the
Association.
The following is a complete list of the grants : '
Parliamentary committee—museum trust property,
£5O ; Kew Observatory, £500; Prof. Wilson—tele-
scope at Melbourne, £200; Col. Sykes—balloon
ascents, £200; Voelcker—manure experiments, £25
Maskelyne—photographic chymistry, £lO ; Sulli-
van—solubility of salts, £3O; Gages—chymical
analysis of minerals, £lO ; Mr. Hopkinl—expansion
and contraction of rocks, £5O ; R. Mallett—earth-
quake experiments, £25; Murchison—Lancashire
fossils, £2O; Dr. Wright—marine fauna, £10; Dr.
Green—medusidw, £5; Dr. Wright—tunicata, £5 ;
It. Patterson—dredging, north of Ireland, £2O; 1)r.
Daubeny—growth of plants, £10; T. Allis-Loste-
ology of birds, £5O; R. M'Andrew—dredging com-
mittee, £5; Dr. Kinahan—dredging in Dublin-,
bay, £l5; J. Thomson—discharge of water, £lo'
Wm. Fairbairn—committee on steamvessels, £l5.
Professor PHILLIPS stated that the sum of money
which had been received by the Association during
the present meeting was altogether £1,929. (Ap-
plause.) The number of old life members who had
been present at the Leeds meeting was 222 ; new
life members, 43 ; old annual subscribers, 111 ;
new annual subscribers, 90 ; associates, 706; ladies,
508; foreigners, 13; making the total number of
members composing the Leeds meeting 1,693. (Ap-
plause.) This meeting, the learned professor addql,
had produced only £7B less than was received at
the meeting of the Association in Dublin last year.
(Applause.)
Lord MONTEAGLE then rose and. proposed a vote
of thanks to the president and executive officers of
the British Association for having selected Leeds as
their place of meeting this year, and for the excel-
lent manner in which the business of the Associa-
tion had been conducted. (Applause.) He spoke of
the meeting as having been a very successful one,
and regarded it, in relation to Leeds and the West
Riding, as a union between science in the abstract
and science applied and brought to practical re-
sults. (Applause.) One great peculiarity of the
meeting, he said, had been the practical nature of
the subjects discussed, and the large proportion of
local contributions. (Hear, hear.)
The resolution was carried with acclamation, and
Professer OWEN responded to it. He expressed.
in his own name, and on behalf of the British As-
sociation, their sense of gratitude for the reception
which they had met with, and for the arrangements
of every kind which had been effected for the effi-
cient performance of their duties and for their com-
fort. (Applause.) He said that entire unanimity
had prevailed among the various public bodies of
the borough, and in thanking; in the first place, the
Mayor aud Corporation, he remarked that the ma&-
nificent Town-hall had been placed at their entire
disposal, and it had afforded ample convenience for
the business of the Association. (Applause.) The
learned professor thanked seriatim various persons
and public bodies who had contributed to ren-
der the arrangements for the Association com-
plete, and in the course of his observations he
alluded particularly to the pleasure which the mem-
bers of the society had derived from inspecting the
Leeds Local Exhibition of Industry. (Applause.)
He added that the Association would leave Leeds
with a much higher and more expanded sense of
the industry and importance of the town. (Ap-
plause.) In thanking those gentlemen who had
entertained the visitors, the learned professor said
he could not refrain from referring to the munificent
hospitality of one gentleman, Mr. G. S. Beecroft,
one of the • members for the borough, who had
opened his arms, so to speak, to the whole of the
members of the Association. (Applause.)
The meeting of the Association will be held next
year in Aberdeen.