The British Association's Visit to Montreal, 1884 : Letters

Section D, Biology, Professor Moseley, a Man of Thoroughly Darwinian

type of mind, will preside; in F, Economic Science, Sir Richard Temple will be a host in himself; while in G, Mechanical Science, Sir F J. Bramwell is sure to be vigorous and original; finally, in the new section H, Anthropology, Dr. E. B. Tylor is the very man that ought to have been selected. Lord Aberdare, we regret to say, has been compelled to retire from the presidency of the Geographical Section; but for a Canadian meeting no more suitable president could be obtained than the veteran Arctic explorer, Sir Leopold McClintock, who, we trust, will be persuaded to take the place of Lord Aberdare. All the vice-presidents and secretaries of sections have been chosen with equal care; and thus the Association has taken the very best means of proving to the Canadians how highly they, appreciate the honour of the invitation, and in what respect they hold their prospective audiences. For the public lectures, the popular feature of the meetings, it is hoped to secure the services of Professor W. G. Adams, the able Professor of Physics in King's College, London, who it is hoped will be able to go; Dr. Dallinger, the well-known-biologist, and Professor Ball, the witty and eloquent Astronomer Royal for Ireland, who will deliver the popular lecture par excellence.

Thus it will be seen that every possible arrangement has been made that could be made beforehand to insure complete success, and there can be little doubt that neither the Association nor the Canadians will be disappointed. Section A is following the example set last year in

Section D by Professor Ray Lankester. the Committee, As We Have Already

announced, are sending out a circular inviting mathematicians and physicists to co-operate with them in sustaining discussions and contributing papers; one of the special subjects for discussion in this section on September 1st will be the vexed one of the connection between sun spots and terrestrial phenomena. In conclusion we may say that the American Association will meet in Philadelphia on September 3rd, and those who have not had enough of science at Montreal can enjoy another week of it at the Quaker City. The Philadelphia Committee have sent a cordial invitation to the members of the British Association to attend their meetings, offering to do the utmost in their power to make the visit at once pleasant and profitable. This will be a red letter year in the history of both Associations.

Letter No. 1.

Thursday, August 21st, 1884; on board "PARISIAN,"--getting near Newfoundland.

My beloved Mother.--I sent you some lines from the train on Saturday 16th, and a card to Clara after we arrived on board. This is a capital ship, and lucky for us it is so, for we have had a regular gale. I little thought it was possible that I should dislike any sea as I do this Atlantic! It has been dreadful weather--grey in the clouds above and waters beneath, and blowing hard, without anything to brighten the vast waste of waters, and I have heartily wished myself away from it. This truly humiliating state of things will cause you to triumph over me, no doubt! I became uncomfortable and headachy and could do nothing, nor bear to stay in the saloon, and the drawing room, such as it is, is taken possession of by the men, who lay themselves down full length on the seats and leave no room for any ladies, so I have stayed in my cabin. Dr. Protheroe Smith has been quite a comfort to me. He is such a good man, and so pleasant, and has given me things to read, and relates interesting medical and religious experiences. While I write, an enormous wave has dashed against my port light and given me a flash of darkness. Hedley has been rather ill, but has never quite lost his appetite. Gibson and the two others have held out well. Evelyn has been in her berth since Monday, when it began to blow, but she has not been really ill. John and Dick have braved the storm on deck, and say the sight of the waves from the stern was magnificent, but I don't care for this kind of awful uncomfortable magnificence, which makes me feel a miserable shrimp, whose fate it is to be swallowed up by these raging waves, and who well deserves it. So I only made a feeble attempt to get to the deck on Monday, and was glad, to leave it in half an hour when it rained. I went down to the drawing room to look at some men playing chess, but as the others stared at me as if I had no right to be there, and the motion was very bad, I had soon to leave ignominiously. Mr. Barrett has entertained me with some ghost stories, well authenticated and printed for private circulation. I have begun writing this to-day because there seems some chance of posting it on Saturday or Sunday, when Sir Leonard and Lady Tilley and two sons are to be landed at New Brunswick as we pass down the Straits of Belle Isle, I think. I shall not see your birth-place as we shall be too far off.

Friday, 22nd.--I went upon deck after breakfast in a great hurry to see an iceberg. I was greeted with great kindness by every one after my three days' seclusion, and thoroughly enjoyed the day and the ocean for the first time. It was very cold but clear and sparkling, and there was no motion to speak of; after the gale, and the great hills and valleys of the Atlantic roll in a storm, it seemed impossible it could be so smooth; but we are to have every experience of weather, as a fog came on and we steamed very slowly and blew fog signals for an hour! However, the sun broke forth and lifted the curtain of fog, and within a quarter of a mile we saw a beautiful iceberg twelve or fifteen hundred feet deep, they said, and so beautiful in its ultra marine colouring. The shape was like a village church somewhat in ruins. Miss Fox, a sister of Caroline Fox, is on board and sketched the icebergs and the waves during the storm very cleverly. They were also photographed by Mr. Barrett and a professional. After dinner we were all on deck again and watched for the lights on the coast of Labrador, which mark the entrance into the Straits of Belle Isle, and at last a twinkle caught my eye and we all greeted it with joy! Isn't it wonderful that a ship can be steered across that vast expanse of water straight to this light, in spite of clouds and storms and without the sight of sun or moon or stars? If I was teaching a class I should quote this as a good illustration of "God's mysterious ways." We wander on through all the changes, and chances of this mortal life, and we don't know the why, or when, or where, but at last we see the lights of heaven looming on our horizon and are at the haven where we would be. Then we realize that all the time He was guiding us by ways that we knew not! In the evening we heard an auction amusingly carried on, though I did not approve of the gambling connected with it; and then Mr. Barrett gave a short account of apparitions, and there was a discussion.

I am now writing after breakfast on Saturday and we expect to reach Quebec on Sunday night. It will be a dreadful disappointment if we don't see the first view, which is so fine, by daylight. We entered the Gulf of St. Lawrence last night (Friday). I give you a list of our saloon fellow passengers and you will see that I knew a good many of them before.

LIST OF SALOON PASSENGERS PER S. "PARISIAN," (CAPTAIN JAMES WYLIE,) FOR QUEBEC, AUGUST 16TH, 1884.

Mr. H. Alabaster Mr. A. H. Allen Dr. J. T. Arlidge Mr. Atchison Mr. B. Baker Major E. Bance Miss Barlow Mr. W. F. Barrett Dr. Beamish Mr. G Belyea Mr. G W. Bloxam Miss Bodman Dr. H. Borns Mr. Stephen Bourne Miss E E. Bourne Miss E. M. Bourne Mr. A. H. Bradley Sir Frederick Bramwell Mr. R. G. Brook Mr. Robert Capper Mrs. Capper Mr. G. C. Chatterton Mr. W. H. Clemmey Mr. C. Cooke Mrs. Cooper Miss Cooper Mr. F. B. C. Costelloe Mr. Crampton Mrs. Crampton Mr. Crookshank Mr. W. C. Davy Miss Daw Mr. W. Boyd Dawkins Mr. Thomas Denman Prof. Dewar Mrs. Dewar Mr. G. E. Dobson Mr. R. Edminson Mr. E. Farnworth Mr. J. Fewings Prof. G. Forbes Mr. R Formby Mr. C. Le Neve Foster Mr. Howard Fox Miss Fox Prof. Fream Hon. C. W. Fremantle Capt. Douglas Galton Mr. John L. Garsed Dr. J. H. Gilbert Mrs. Gilbert Mr. J. H. Gladstone Miss Gladstone Miss Gladstone Miss Gladstone Mr. J. H. Glover Mr. A. G. Greenhill Mr. Egbert de Hamel Mr. N. C. Hardcastle Mr. B. W. Hardcastle Dr. G. Harley Mr. N. B. Harley Miss Harris Mr. R. T. Herford Miss A. C. Herford Mr. Horniman Mr. W. Hurst Mr. John Jones Rev. Harry Jones Mr. George Oliver Jones Miss Fanny Jones Mr. R. H. Jones Hon. Mrs. Joyce Rev. A. G. Joyce Mr. Simeon Kaye Mr. J. W. Leahy Mr. B. T. Leech Mrs. Leech General Sir J. H. Lefroy, K. C. M. G. Lady Lefroy, and Maid Mr. James A. Love Mr. William Lukes Mr. W. Macandrew Mr. G. Mackay Mr. U. Mackay Mr. Harry Mackeson Mr. James Mackrell Mr. Samuel Marsden Mr. James Mactear Mr. W. P. Marshall Dr. W. R. McNab Mr. C. T. Mitchell Mr. W. J. Muirhead Mr. Hugo M. Muller Mr. E. K. Muspratt Miss J. Muspratt Mr. J. S. O'Halloran Admiral Sir E. Ommanney Mr. W. H. Perkin Mr. W. H. Perkin, Jun. Mr. L. G. Pike Mr. Benjamin Pilling Mr. John Pilling Mrs. Pilling Mr. John Powell Mr. W. H. Preece Mr. P. Price Mrs. Price Lord Rayleigh Lady Rayleigh Clara Lady Rayleigh, and Maid Mr. J. B. Readman Mr. A. W. Reinold Mr. C. Richardson Mr. R. Richardson Mrs. Richardson Mr. A. Rigg Mr. A. F. Riddell Mrs. Riddell Rev. J. Robberds Prof. W. Chandler Roberts Mrs. Roberts Mr. G. H. Robertson Mrs. Robertson Canon Rogers Mr. W. Rogers Earl of Rosse Mr. P. L. Sclater Mr. W. L. Sclater Mr. Sydney C. Scott Mr. A. Sedgwick Prof. H. S. Hele Shaw Prof. J. P. Sheldon Mr. George Smith Dr. P. Smith Dr. H. Smith Prof. W. J. Sollas Mr. E. Sollas Mr. Sowden Mr. A. Sowden Dr. W. D. Spanton Mr. Russell Stephenson Mr. T. H. Stockwell Hon. R. Strutt Hon. H. V. Strutt Mr. A. Summers Mr. R. W. Cooke-Taylor Mrs. Cooke-Taylor Mr. T. H. Thomas Dr. Alex. S. Thomson Mr. William Thomson Mr. W. J. Thomson Dr. H. G. Thompson Sir Leonard Tilley, K.C.M.G., C.B. Lady Tilley Master Herbert Tilley Master Leonard Tilley Mr. W. Topley Mr. W. Tribe Mr. G. S. Turner Capt. H. S. Walker Mrs. Walker Mr. Ward Miss Ward Mr. C. A. Wells Rev. E. Wells Mr. Westgarth Mrs. Westgarth Mrs. Westgarth Mr. W. Whitaker Miss E. H. Williamson Mr. E. S. Williams Miss Wilson Rev. H. H. Winwood Mr. Alfred Wood Mrs. Wood Mr. H. T. Wood Mr. A. W. Worthington Miss Worthington Mr. T. Wrightson Mr. F. York Mrs. York

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