REPORT OF CLUB'S DELEGATE.
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stones and shells brought home in fishermen's trawls ; to keep an
eye on newly ploughed fields, especially after rain, for flint imple-
ments and foreign pebbles ; all these were within the powers of
the majority of members of local Societies. Even at home a
good deal of work of real value could be done by non-specialists,
such as the preparation of the softer rocks to show the propor-
tion of the ingredients, the making of sections of rocks and
fossils for examination under the microscope, and the extraction
of fossils from their matrix by means of brushes, solutions, etc.
The course of evolution could be studied in certain beds simply
by the minutely detailed collection of the fossils therein, the
naming of the specimens being left to specialists. Sir Arthur
gave many interesting examples of the valuable results which
had accrued in the past from the observations and collections
made by local amateurs, and although it was scarcely to be
expected, owing to the modern methods of excavating and
quarrying, that the larger fossils found years ago would often be
duplicated, there remained a wide field for geological work by the
members of local Societies.
Apart from the President's address, the principal subject to
which the attention of the delegates was directed was the Effects
of Urban Expansion upon the fauna and flora of the Countryside.
This took the form of a discussion in which Sir John Russell,
Prof. E. J. Salisbury, Mr. T. Sheppard and others took part.
Sir John Russell, after referring to the many ways in which the
spread of the urban population is destroying the native fauna
and flora, said that although some of the effects were inevitable,
a good deal of the destruction was unnecessary and was due to
the fact that the new population coming into the country was
urban in its outlook and education. Much destruction was simply
due to lack of knowledge of country things. It would be helpful
if a sort of handbook of etiquette for the country could be written
setting forth the things that can be done and those that should
not be done. He also strongly recommended the preservation
of small woodlands and copses adjacent to developing building
sites.
Prof. Salisbury particularly alluded to the effect of the
indirect factors introduced by urban expansion, especially the
upsetting of the balance between species. He thought it was
even more important to maintain the normal conditions than