'Transactions.' Mr. Cresswell was a born Naturalist and sportsman; and although unfortunately he could never be induced to commit to paper the results of his many years' experience in sea fishing and wild-fowl shooting, he was always most ready to impart information to those who sought it. For many years, in conjunction with the late Harry Hornigold, who had long been his faithful and attached servant in all matters relating to yachting and gunning, Mr. Cresswell had very successfully pursued a very curious method of taking fowl by means of stake nets set along the shore just above high-water mark; and those who have seen the charming cage of waders in the fish-house at the Zoological Gardens, probably owe to Mr. Cresswell the opportunity of studying such birds as Knots and Dunlins in confinement, for birds taken alive in his nets were frequently sent to that institution. In Mr. Dawson Rowley's 'Ornithological Miscellany' for July, 1877 (pp. 354-373) will be found an account of Mr. Cresswell's system of netting, with some excellent illustrations. Mr. Cresswell's genial manners and kindly disposition had endeared him to all who knew him; but amongst the fishing population, whose interests and welfare had always been his peculiar care, it will be long before the genuine regret at the loss of so kind a friend, so forcibly expressed by their numerous attendance at his funeral, will pass away."

At our first meeting, in April, Mr. G. Christopher Davies exhibited a series of photographs of Decoys, which were explained by Mr. Southwell: this was only the first of a series of exhibitions of photographic views taken by Mr. Davies which he has shown this year, and to which we shall have to allude again. At the second meeting, in May, Mr. C. B. Plowright delivered a lecture on "Fermentation, Putrefaction, and Zymotic Disease," illustrated by diagrams. After pointing out the relationship which exists between these phenomena, he described particularly the researches of Koch on blood poisoning, and his discovery of the Bacillus which accompanies consumption. Mr. Plowright also described the Bacillus of anthrax and the experiments of Pasteur, by which were demonstrated the possibility of cultivating an attenuated state of the anthrax microbe, which could be used as an inoculating medium for

the protection of sheep and oxen against this virulent disease. Unfortunately this lecture was delivered without notes, and we have no means of publishing in our 'Transactions' what would have been one of the best papers of our year. Mr. Plowright delivered an address to the Norfolk Agricultural Society in February last on "Mildew in Wheat," to which the members of our Society were kindly invited: this address being given on a Saturday, many of our members interested in the subject were unable to attend.

At the September meeting Mr. Preston read "Notes of a Walking Tour in the West Riding of Yorkshire," and described the plants which he had found there; and Mr. Harmer exhibited a set of photographs of the scenery of the Riviera, and described the flowers which he had found during his residence there last spring, with the help of the illustrations to Mr. Moggridge's beautiful 'Flora of Mentone.'

At the October meeting, Mr. Southwell described the animals and birds he had met with in a visit to the valley of the Upper Engadine; and Mr. Edward Bidwell sent for exhibition a fine set of photographs of the Bass Rock, showing the breeding places of the Gannets.

In November a letter was read from Mr. Marsham, calling attention to the extraordinary rainfall of last October, as compared with that of the same month of former years. The greatest

rainfall in twenty-four hours ever registered by Mr. Marsham was on the 22nd October, 1882, viz. 145 inch. Mr. Davies showed some photographs of the Swan-pit at the Great Hospital. Mr. Stevenson read a paper on the Dusky Shearwater; and exhibited a specimen which was picked up dead at Earsham in 1858, and which was the first specimen of this species ever found in Great Britain. Mr. Southwell exhibited and described a specimen of the Sooty Shearwater, which he obtained alive at Lynn in 1851, and which he recorded at that time as an immature specimen of the Great Shearwater: the renaming of this specimen causes an alteration in the list of Norfolk birds by the substitution of Puffinus griseus for Puffinus major. Mr. Horace Woodward read a paper on "The

Scenery of Norfolk," in which he traced the geological causes which have taken part in the formation of the present aspect of our county, and the changes of its inhabitants which have taken place since prehistoric times. Both Mr. Stevenson's and Mr. Woodward's papers will be printed in our Transactions."'

At the December meeting Mr. Southwell contributed two papers-one containing very valuable notes on the Seal Fishery; and the other on a Whale of the genus Hyperoodon, commonly known as the Bottle-nose Whale, illustrated by drawings and photographs of skulls. Both these papers Mr. Southwell kindly allows us to print. Some interesting notes were read, contributed by General Norgate, on "The Mungoose, the Indian Crow and Cuckoo." These notes contained a graphic account of a fight between a Mungoose and a Cobra, at which the General was present, and satisfied himself that the victory of the former was entirely due to his quickness in evading the Snake's attack, and, in fact, that the Cobra was killed without ever having been able to strike the Mungoose; "for the poison fangs were there plain enough, but did not appear to have been used, inasmuch as the poison glands were full." I venture to quote the General's account of the Crows' parliaments. "These Crows have meetings or assemblies every now and then. They all settle in a ring on a piece of grass, several make a peculiar kind of caw, and every Crow within earshot comes. There generally is one in the centre, who does not attempt to fly away. After a great deal of hopping about, suddenly several Crows attack the prisoner, sometimes kill him, break his wing, or otherwise most severely punish him. A native very often puts them to flight, or a dog runs in at the assembly, when they all fly away, prisoner also. I have not observed if another court is quickly assembled again. I have seen three hundred Crows attend one of these courts, which the natives call 'Punchaits,' the name of one of their courts of justice or injustice. Of course I have never been able to find out the object of these courts, or what Crow commandment has been broken; but rest assured the criminal has done something against Crow laws. Once I saw the prisoner punished with death on the spot. Once another

had his wing broken, and was allowed to go away: it frequented my garden afterwards for ten years, and was always alone. Four or more Crows come from a distance, having one in charge, who, as I have stated, does not attempt to fly away. A certain sound is made by the Crows all putting their beaks to the ground, and every Crow, whatever he may be about, seems obliged to attend the summons. Some remain a short time, and then fly away. Some remaining till the end. I have often seen nothing done at these meetings, and no prisoner at all. During this time the Crows strut and hop about in a most ludicrous manner, with the head put down in a most knowing way. Sometimes two have a small row between themselves; but this is stopped by the others with severe jobs of their beaks. We, with our fancied superior knowledge, hesitate to admit that Crows have courts and laws, punishments, &c. The native does not mince the matter, but tells you he has seen their customs all his life, and would consider one a fool who disbelieves what he sees so often with his own eyes."

At the January meeting a letter was read from the Rev. J. A. Lawrence, describing a Meteor which he saw on January 27th. Mr. J. H. Gurney, Jun., contributed some interesting notes on the "Golden Eagle," which he has had unusual opportunities for observing in Scotland. These, with some further notes on "Grouse and Grouse Moors," will be found in our 'Transactions.' Mr. Southwell read a paper by Mr. Clement Reid, of H.M. Geological Survey, which we print by the author's kind permission, on a species of Lithoglyphus discovered by him in the Weybourne Crag. This is a very curious discovery, as this freshwater shell, which at the time of the deposition of the Weybourne Crag was living in England, is now, so far as Europe is concerned, found living only in the Danube, and a closely allied species is also said to occur in South America. Mr. Southwell also exhibited a skull of the Grey Seal (Halichoerus gryphus) killed on Breydon in December last, and described its characteristic points. Mr. Southwell will be glad if any of our members who have the chance will send him the head of any Seal occurring on the Norfolk coast.

But the most remarkable feature of this our January meeting was the exhibition, by Mr. Christopher Davies, of a large series of most excellent photographs, taken by himself, and shown by the magic lantern. These views included sixteen of Fritton Decoy, most valuable, as, with Mr. Davies' description, they enabled us to understand how a decoy is worked. There were also views on the Yare from Thorpe to Breydon; of the Bure and its tributaries, the Ant and the Thurne,-the Waveney and Oulton Broad; several of the Norfolk Broads; and finally, a series of Walberswick and the River Orwell. It is much to be hoped that Mr. Davies will favour us now and then with an exhibition of views such as these; and I would venture to suggest how very valuable such series of views of the same places, taken by an agency which "cannot lie" at intervals of many years, would be in enabling an estimate to be formed of the extent of the gradual and minute change which is always going on around us, for the most part unrecorded. I think Mr. Davies' views of our own county, and Mr. Bidwell's set of the Bass Rock shown in October, are among the most interesting incidents of our past year.

At our last monthly meeting Mr. Cross exhibited a small specimen of Loligo from Mundesley; and Mr. Edwards showed a method of preserving spiders in spirit, set out on card in testtubes, which allows better examination of the specimens than the ordinary method of indiscriminate bottling. Mr. A. W. Preston read "Meteorological Notes for 1882," which we print, and hope he will continue annually, as a valuable record for reference. Mr. H. Woodward sent some additional notes on 66 Norfolk Spas," in continuation of his paper published in the last number of our 'Transactions.' Mr. J. H. Gurney, Jun., sent some Ornithological Notes for North Norfolk during the past mild winter, the most striking of which was the record of a great migration of Goldencrested Wrens last October. Mr. John Young contributed a capital paper, which we print, on the "Bearded Tit in confinement;" he having kept and watched this species for twelve years. In addition to the papers which have been read at our meetings, it is proposed to print this year "Fauna and Flora of Norfolk,