THE ESSEX FIELD CLUB.
249
expense. Mr. Cole advocated boldly asking the Epping Forest Committee for
the use of the whole building as a Museum, and then raising, by public subscrip-
tion, a sum of £300 or £400 to suitably fit up the place with cabinets and cases,
so that a full series of forest animals and plants, prepared and arranged in an
educationally useful way, could be exhibited in it. The Museum might then be
made one of great interest, and a centre of instruction and amusement to the vast
number of people, both students of forest natural history and ordinary visitors,
who entered the Forest during all times of the year.
The President said that the great thing was to excite the interest of the
visitors to the Forest ; the desire for more knowledge would soon follow.
Professor G. S. Boulger, F.L.S., then gave an address on ''Our Forest Trees,
and how they should be represented in the Forest Museum," illustrating his
remarks by an admirable series of sections of the woods of different kinds of trees
existing in the Forest area.
[A short abstract of Professor Boulger's Address is printed in the present part
of The Essex Naturalist, pages 243, 244.]
The President alluded to the value of the wood of the Hornbeam for making
cog-wheels in mill-work.
Mr. Buxton, Mr. W. Cole, Mr. T. Hay-Wilson, and Mr. McLachlan made
remarks on several portions of Professor Boulger's address, and he was cordially
thanked for the same.
Mr. T. V. Holmes, F.G.S., as delegate of the Essex Field Club at the meeting
of the British Association, then read his "Notes on the Conference of Delegates
of the Corresponding Societies of the British Association at Liverpool, 1896."
[See pp. 236-242.]
Considerable discussion arose on points in the Report, carried on by the
President, Professor Meldola, Mr. W. Cole, and Professor Boulger. The question
of Federation of Local Societies, and Professor Petrie's proposal with regard to
Local Museums, were the principal matters discussed.
[Mr. Cole's remarks upon the latter proposal, which he regarded as likely to be
in the highest degree prejudicial to the best interests of Local Museums, will be
summarised in a future article on the whole subject of the formation and arrange-
ment of Local Museums of Natural History.]
A vote of thanks to Mr. Holmes for his services as Delegate on behalf of the
Club at the Liverpool Conference, closed the proceedings.
The Annual Fungus Foray and 164TH Ordinary Meeting.
Saturday, November 21st, 1896.
Referees and Conductors—M. C. Cooke, Esq., M.A., LL.D., E. M. Holmes, Esq.,
F.L.S., Arthur Lister, Esq., J.P., F.L.S,, and the Hon. Secretaries.
We were compelled to postpone our usual "Fungus Foray" in consequence
of the continued bad weather during September and October. The larger Fungi
had been very plentiful throughout the autumn in all parts of the Forest, although
quickly "damped off" by the wet, but it was hoped that a sufficient number of
species would have escaped the early frosts to allow of a fair representative series
being secured at the above meeting, late as it was in the season.
As an experiment, and for the purpose of searching new ground, a somewhat
small party of members and friends assembled at the Wood Street Station,
R