THE ESSEX FIELD CLUB. 101
a meeting of the Club in May, 1888, by Mr. Symons (Essex
Naturalist II., 88) who, on that occasion, dwelt more especially
upon rainfall observation. A paper on "The use of the
Hygro-Spectroscope" was read before the Club in 1883 by Mr.
F. W. Cory (Trans. IV., 123). On the other hand exceptional
meteorological phenomena—and more particularly those which
may be considered as having any direct influence upon physio-
graphical conditions—should always be fully recorded, and in
this respect it will be found that we have not failed whenever
our County has been subjected to such visitations. Thus the
great flood of August, 1888, was fully recorded by Mr. Radford
Sharpe (Ibid. II., 199); the prolonged frost of 1890-91 formed
the subject of papers by Dr. Thresh (Ibid. V., 64), Mr. French
(Ibid., 66) and Mr. Harding (Ibid., 117). Mr. French also has
written on the seasons of 1893 (Ibid. VII., 188). An account of
the great storm of June 24th, 1897, was compiled by our Editor
from materials supplied by Mr. Symons and others (Ibid. X.,
112). The high tide of Nov. 29th of the same year also formed
the subject of an editorial compilation and of the paper by Mr.
Percy Clark already referred to under geology (Ibid. X., 277,
355). The results of the investigations of the effects of this tide
upon the soil of the inundated lands by Messrs. Dymond and
Hughes were duly noted in our pages (Ibid. XL, 83). Records
of brilliant meteors were also noted in 1890 (Ibid. IV., 231) and
1894 (Ibid. VIII., 158). The evidence that the supposed earth-
quake shock of November 20th, 1887 (Ibid. I., 277) was due to
the explosion of a meteorite was summarised frum Mr. Ford-
ham's observations and published in 1891 (Ibid. V., 44, from
Trans. Herts. Nat. Hist. Soc. IV., 33-62).
VI.—EDUCATIONAL WORK.
In a broad sense the whole work of a local society may be
regarded as educational inasmuch as any organization for bring-
ing scientific activity to a focus must be regarded as a power
making for general intellectual enlightenment. In many ways
during the twenty-one years of our existence have we made the
influence of the Club felt as an educational body. Many lectures,
addresses and demonstrations in the field or in museums have
been given which could no: fairly be described as direct contri-
butions to local scientific investigation, but which might be
considered as pioneering efforts having for their object the