votes of thanks were passed to Mr. Bernhard Smith, who exhibited four ancient martels and a mace of iron; to Mr. Orde-Powlett, who showed a curious mould dug up at Basing House, Hampshire; and to the Director of the Society, Mr. Milman, for the gift of the various books in the library.

BRITISH ARCHEOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION.- June 3. -Mr. H.Syer Cuming, Vice-President, in the Chair.It was announced that the Devizes Congress would com. mence on the 16th of August, Earl Nelson having been elected President for the Congress and the following year. The death of Mr. Planché, Vice-President, was referred to in fitting terms.-Dr. Stevens an nounced the discovery of Roman remains at Corton, Wilts, in a position that appears to indicate the existence of buildings at no great distance.-A seal was exhibited with an inscription, “Johanna de Breneford."-Dr. Kendrick exhibited a curious wooden spoon, with the crowned heart of the Douglas family; Mrs. M. Hyde a silver goblet, with portraits in relief. -Dr. Woodhouse described the progress of the demolition of old Fulham Church, and produced several early flooring tiles. The monumental slab of Bishop Hinchman has also been found.-Mr. W. Money exhibited photographs of the carved bosses of the roof of St. Nicholas' Church, Newbury, which are boldly carved with the emblems of our Lord's Passion.-The Rev. S. M. Mayhew described several beautiful objects of antiquity, and also a portrait of the Duke of Cumberland painted on glass.-Mr. C. Brent exhibited a curious MS., relating to accounts paid by Cecil, Lord Burleigh, 1593.-The first Paper was by Mr. C. W. Dymond, on "Cup Marking, on Burley Moor," and was read by Mr. W. de Gray Birch. It was descriptive of a series of these curious markings on a stone of large size which had hitherto escaped observation. The second Paper was on "The Site of the Village of Wrangholm, near Old Melrose, the birthplace of St. Cuthbert." by Mr. E. Frier, and was read by Mr. L. Brock.-The third Paper was by Mr. T. Morgan, on "Roman Inscriptions from Italy," and now built up in the walls of a mansion at Higham in Kent. They are all sepulchral in character, and are mostly surrounded with architectural borders of great beauty. They were brought to England in the last century, when the collection of classical antiquities was so prevalent. The Paper is the second of a series on similar collections in England, and it is to be hoped that others may follow, that a permanent record may be kept of these contributions to history, which are at present difficult of access or comparison. -Mr. G. Wright reported the arrangements for the Congress, and named the places to be visited.

June 8.-The Council of this Society held a soirée and conversazione at the rooms of the Society of British Architects in Suffolk Street, Pall Mall East. The company, who numbered between 300 and 400, were received by Mr. Thomas Morgan, the treasurer, Mr, R. Horman Fisher, and Mr. George R. Wright, F.S.A. Among the guests were Lord Waveney, the President of last year's Congress at Norwich and Yarmouth, and Lord Nelson, the President Elect of the coming Congress at Devizes. Among the curiosities exhibited in cases in various parts of the rooms were specimens of Roman pottery, urns, vases, tiles, jars, &c., dug up in various parts of London, medieval

jewellery, cut glass, jade ornaments, and other articles of vertu, and also an interesting collection of autographs, mainly of the Parliamentary and Stuart

eras.

LONDON AND MIDDLESEX ARCHEOLOGICAL SOCIETY.-June 2..-A general meeting was held in the hall of Sion College, London, the Rev. Lewis B. White, President of the College, in the Chair.-The Rev. William H. Milman, M.A., librarian, read a Paper on the "History and Antiquities of Sion College," which was founded in 1630 under the will of Dr. Thomas White, who died in 1624. The College, was, in fact, a City guild or company, governed by a president and two deans annually elected, instead of by a master and two wardens. The fellows of the college were the clergy of the various parishes in the City of London and in the suburbs, by which word was meant the parishes any part of which touched the boundary of the City. By a decision of the Bishop of London this included all the more recent divisions of these parishes-and the 60 fellows with whom the College had commenced had now somewhat increased in number. Dr. White had been minister of St. Gregory's and afterwards of St. Dunstan's-in-theWest, he was also treasurer of the cathedral of Salisbury, canon of Bristol, of St. Paul's, and of Windsor. He was therefore very wealthy, but he did a great deal of good with his money. He bequeathed £3,000 to purchase the site, &c., of the college and £160 a year, 120 of which was to support 20 persons in an almshouse and £40 for the college. The place was purchased and the almshouse erected, after which, on the suggestion of the Rev. Mr. Simpson, one of the trustees, a library was erected over it. The site had originally been the ancient priory of Elsing Spital, founded originally as an hospital by William Elsing, a citizen of London, and afterwards converted into a priory. The College would ere long be removed to a new building to be erected for it on the Thames Embankment.-The Rev. Hawley Clutterbuck read a Paper on "The Church of St. Alphage," close by Sion College. The old church, dedicated to the ancient English saint and martyr, had stood at the other side of London Wall, and in 1546, the steeple and the church itself having become ruinous in condition, the parishioners petitioned King Henry VIII. to sell them the old chapel of Elsing Spital, and to declare it to be their parish church. They paid some £104 for this church, but save an arch in the present porch there was most probably none of it now remaining. It had been altogether rebuilt in 1777. The registers of the church were in excellent preservation, and commenced in 1612, and the churchwardens' books, beginning in 1527, were a marvellously-preserved record of the highest interest and value.-The company then visited the library of Sion College and the church of St. Alphage, whence they proceeded to the hall of the Company of the Armourers and Braziers, in Coleman Street, where Mr. E. J. Barron, F.S.A., read a Paper on the "History of the Armourers' Company," which was incorporated by the charter of Henry VI., that it had been in existence as a society as early as 1327. In 1708 the Company was united with the Braziers, and has since continued under its present name. court book was preserved since 1413, and the book of accounts since 1497. The hall had been acquired in

The

1428, and several shops were let out on the premises. The present building was erected in 1839-41. Mr. Barron called attention to the charters of the Company, and to a fine collection of silver spoons and cups, a number of which are tazzas, much resembling in shape the modern champagne glasses.-Mr. C. J. Shoppee afterwards described the various objects of antiquarian interest which were shown.

SOCIETY OF BIBLICAL ARCHEOLOGY.-June 1.Mr. Walter Morrison, V.P., in the Chair.-Lieut.Col. Warren, R.E., read a Paper on "The Site of the Temples of the Jews," in which he stated that, in his opinion, the explorations at Jerusalem tended to confirm the authenticity of the traditional sites of the Holy Sepulchre and Temple of the Jews, and have completely overthrown the theory advanced by Mr. Fergusson that the dome of the rock covers the Holy Sepulchre. He first showed that the Zion to which the ark of the Lord was brought by King David was a totally distinct hill from Moriah on which the Temple of Solomon was built, and pointed out that the confusion existing in the minds of many on the subject arises from the fact that, of the principal poetical works, the psalms, referring specially to Zion, were composed by David during the period that Zion was the Holy Hill, while the psalms written after the building of the Temple only refer to Zion in parallelisms. He then pointed out that of the three hills on which Jerusalem is built, there is a general concurrence between the Bible, Josephus, and Maccabees, that Moriah the Temple mount is that to the east, that to the south-west is the upper city of Josephus, and that to the north-west is the Akra, formerly the city of David (Zion), which was cut down by the Maccabees to prevent it dominating the Temple. In conclusion the writer referred to a recent paper of Col. Wilson, on the masonry of the Temple, and pointed out the inconsistencies which exist in his conclusions, and that while asserting that the larger marginal drafted stones are to be referred to one epoch, he makes that epoch extend for 1,000 years, from the time of Nehemiah to Justinian, and proposes that the heaviest and best masonry in the Sanctuary was erected by the latter.-The following communication, by Professor Giovanni Kminek-Szedlo, was read by the Secretary:-"The Papyrus of Bek-en-Amen, preserved in the Municipal Museum of Bologna."

ANTHROPOLOGICAL INSTITUTE.-May 11.-Mr. A. L. Lewis in the Chair.-The following Papers were read: "Notes on Prehistoric Discoveries in Central Russia," by Mr. C. H. E. Carmichael,-"Notes on the Occurrence of Stone Implements of the Surface Period in South Russia," by Mr. W. D. Gooch,— "Notes on the Western Regions," by Mr. A. Wylie, "On Jade Implements in Switzerland," by Mr. H. M. Westropp, and "Flint Implements from the Valley of the Bann," by Mr. W. Ĵ. Knowles.

May 25.-Dr. E. B. Tylor, F.R.S., President, in the Chair.-The first Paper brought before the meeting was on "The Stone Age in Japan." It was by Professor John Milne, F.G.S., of the University of Tokio (Yeddo), in whose absence extracts from it were read by Dr. Henry Woodward, F.G.S., F.R.S., of the British Museum. It was illustrated by a collection of fragments of pottery, shells, and other remains from kitchen middens in Japan. These kitchen

middens were scattered over a large area, and many of them had been explored personally by the author of the Paper. The species of shells found in them were enumerated and described. The fragments of bones belonged to bears, boars, birds, and fishes, while some were human, affording clear indications, Professor Milne thought, of the cannibalism of the early natives of Japan. The potsherds belonged to vessels of the vase type, and were seemingly traceable to the Ainos, the oldest known inhabitants of the islands. Dr. Tylor thought this primitive pottery might have even developed into the famous Satsuma ware of our own days. Among the stone implements were arrowheads, stone axes, and chisels, all very like those found in all parts of Europe. There were also stone ornaments which had been used to decorate the idols and the chiefs. Tumuli were very numerous in Japan, as well as caves, both natural and artificial. Professor Milne had opened one of the latter, which was covered with inscriptions. The Japanese themselves were very keen archeologists, and made valuable collections of stone implements, old pottery, &c., the favourite notion among them being that such things were freaks of Nature.—The Paper having been discussed, Mr. C. Pfoundes read a communication, the result of thirteen years' residence in the Japanese islands, on "The Manners and Customs of the Japanese." He also exhibited a large collection of illustrative photographs and drawings.

ST. PAUL'S ECCLESIOLOGICAL SOCIETY.-May 7-Mr. Joseph Grimshire in the Chair.-Mr. John D. Sedding, M.R.I.B.A., read a Paper on the "Perpendicular Period," which formed the conclusion of the series of architectural papers read before the members of this Society. A large number of drawings of windows, screens, and other architectural details, of the Perpendicular Order, from Westminster and St. Albans Abbeys, Sherborne Minster, Gloucester Cathedral, and other buildings, which were exhibited upon the walls, served as illustrations to the Paper.

May 22.-The members held their second afternoon gathering for the present summer, and inspected the chapel of St. Etheldreda, in Ely Place, Holborn, and the church of the Austin Friars, near Old Broad Street. -At Ely Place the construction of the chapel, which was formerly the private chapel of the palace of the Bishops of Ely, was fully explained by Mr. John Young (the architect under whom the fabric has recently been renovated throughout), who discoursed on its early history, and on the salient points of its chief architec tural features, its lofty oak roof, its magnificent eastern and western windows, full of geometrical and flowing tracery; its lofty side lights, its ancient sculptures, and, lastly, its undercroft or crypt, which till very lately was filled up with earth and with barrels of ale and porter from Messrs. Reid's brewery close by. In removing the earth from this crypt, preparatory to commencing the restoration of the chapel, there were discovered the skeletons of several persons who had been killed 200 years ago by the fall of a chapel in Blackfriars, and were here interred. The “ conservative restoration" of the fabric-in the general plan of which the late Sir George Gilbert Scott had been frequently consulted-was much admired by the ecclesiologists. Ely Chapel was at one time leased to the National Society for a schoolroom, after which it

remained for a while untenanted; but in 1843 it was opened for the service of the Established Church in the Welsh language. In 1874 it was bought by a Roman Catholic community, and thus, after a lapse of three hundred years, it has once more reverted to its original uses.-At Austin Friars, the members heard a Paper on that church read by Mr. George H. Birch, who contrasted its spacious nave and side aisles with the small and elegant chapel which they had just left. This arrangement, he said, was necessary for the purposes of a religious order such as the Austin, or Augustinian, Friars, whose special mission it was to preach to large popular audiences. The nave and its aisles, he said, were wider than those of some of our cathedrals; and the windows, which were of the Decorated style, had probably belonged to a more ancient fabric than the present. Mr. Birch drew attention to the elegant tracery of the southern windows, and to the sad havoc made in the church at the Reformation, when its beautiful central tower, transepts, and chancel, were pulled down, and Henry VIII. seized upon the revenues of the brotherhood, who had held the church since its first foundation by the noble house of Bohun, Earls of Hereford, in the middle of the thirteenth century. Many of the Bohuns, Courtenays, and other nobles of the Plantagenet times lay buried within these sacred walls. Edward VI. gave the nave of the church-all that is now left -to the Dutch merchants of the Protestant faith, and their services had been held here for three centuries.

SOCIETY FOR THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF THE FINE ARTS.-May 13.-The Rev.E. Bradley presided.-Dr. Phené delivered a lecture on "Travels in Asia Minor."

The lecturer dwelt chiefly on the recent discoveries made at the sites of Troy and Pergamos, and his observations on visiting these sites. He referred to the peculiar custom of the carly dwellers in Asia Minor of levelling down the hilltops to form sites for cities. This, he said, opened up to us half their manners, civic and religious. By this means they were secured from attack from wild beasts or man; they were freed from the miasma of the marshes of the low ground; and they had a commanding view over their pastures. They attained, in fact, what we now attain by systems of drainage, a vigilant police, and strong armies. Proceeding to describe the district of Troy, he remarked that ancient writers specially noted that towns on the plains were walled for the sake of security. Dr. Schliemann had undoubtedly discovered a city of Ilion, or Ilium, but it was not necessarily the chief city. Without going into the question of Hissarlik being the site of that city, Dr. Phené said it must in any case have been one of the towns belonging to the Dardani. The remains near Buonarbashi agreed more with the rain-proof porches to walk in and with the separate chambers for Priam's sons and sons-in-law, referred to in Book VI. of the "Iliad." The foundations at Buonarbashi, when compared with the oldest remains in Italy, were found to be of the type called Pelasgic. They were carefully, it might almost be said royally, constructed, while those at Hissarlik are carelessly put together. The impression of the lecturer was that the ruins of Hissarlik represented the Acropolis of ancient Troy. The Trojans were not a naval people, but the vast jars for oil and wine

The

unearthed by Dr. Schliemann testified to commercial importance, while the royal residence and temple would, like the Temple of Diana at Ephesus, be secluded from the noisy rabble of commerce. Further south, and strongly protected from the sea by a bold coast, was the site of the ruins of Chigri. This district abounded in relics. It was near here that Alexander erected the Troas bearing his name, and it seemed to the lecturer that he was well advised in selecting the former royal rather than the former commercial district. Dr. Schliemann may have opened, he said, the great mart of Troy; but Priam dwelt at Ilium. Ida, on a spur of which Ilium stood, was the sacred mountain of the Trojans. This matter had been considered on too narrow a basis. We had been looking for a city, it was urged, while we named a country; for citizens, while we were thinking of a nation. Troja was the capital of Troas, and Ilium was the royal and military stronghold. Referring to peculiarities of the inhabitants of the district, the lecturer drew attention to the golden hair and light blue eyes of many of the women; a remarkable dance for festival days, in which the dancers, young and old, performed in line and not in circle; and the children having horses for their principal plaything. horse was famous in the history of Troy; and it was curious that these modern toys had a noticeable shape which was almost identical with that of one which Dr. Phené had picked up from the ground, which must have been of great age. After alluding to an ascent of Samothrak-the lecturer saying he believed he was the first person who in modern times had seen the plains from this summit-the ruins of Pergamos were discussed. This town had been built on a levelled peak in the manner already mentioned. That there had been such levelling was made certain by the summit of the mountain having been allowed to stand and form a cone. In the operation material was provided for the construction of buildings. It had been founded in remote ages, further back than the time of Lysimachus; but in more artistic days the rude materials would be used only in the defence walls, while the newer buildings would be built in a more costly manner. The walls were still so perfect that their embattled appearance made it difficult to believe that at the foot of the mountain there lived a people at peace with it. The place was strewn with blocks of fine marble, broken columns, pieces of friezes, entablatures, and so forth. Reference was made to the remains brought thence to Berlin; but many art treasures, it was said, were still concealed. The sculptures at Avignon in France, it was pointed out, much resembled those in the museum at Berlin from Pergamos. After saying that there must have been a great school of painting there, the lecturer concluded by describing sundry observations which he made in the neighbourhood of Smyrna.

NUMISMATIC.-May 20.-Mr. W. S. W. Vaux, V.P., in the Chair.-Sir A. Phayre exhibited a silver coin lately found in Pegu, said to be of the tenth or eleventh century. The coin had on the obverse a conch shell with a crab inside it.-Mr. Hoblyn exhibited an original warrant, dated Feb. 14th, 1627, to Sir W. Parkhurst, Warden of the Mint, altering the value of certain gold and silver coins; also a selection of rare milled shillings from Elizabeth to George III,

-Mr. Krumbholz exhibited a proof in gold of a Keepang piece of 1783 of the East India Company; also two rare Oxford pound pieces, of 1642 and 1644, and an unpublished variety of a twenty-shilling Scottish piece of Charles I., with the letter F under the horse's feet.-Mr. Copp exhibited a portion of a hoard of late Roman denarii found at a farm called Rheworthen Isa, near Aberystwith.-Mr. H. S. Gill communicated a Paper "On Unpublished Seventeenth Century Yorkshire Tokens, with Contemporary Notes on some of the Issuers of Hull and other Towns." In the Paper Mr. Gill described about fifty new types.Mr. L. Bergsoe, of Copenhagen, communicated a Paper, in which he discussed the place of mintage, &c., of certain coins of the Cuerdale find. These were the coins inscribed EBRAICE CIVITAS, CVNETTI, and QVENTOVICI, and he attributed them to the towns of Evreux, Condé, and Quentovic respectively, three towns in the north of France, near the Scheldt. In the inscription CIRTENA ACRTEN Mr. Bergsoe traced the name of CNUT REX, and in SIEFREDVS that of a Danish chief. Mr. Bergsoe argued from these premises that none of these coins was struck in England, but that the type of the English coin was adopted by foreign moneyers on account of the high estimation in which these coins were held.-General A. H. Schindler communicated a Paper on some unpublished Mohammedan coins acquired during a recent tour in Caramania. These coins were for the most part struck by Abu Said Bahadur Khan, last Moghul Emperor of Persia, and by Shah Rukh.

ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY.-May 24.-Sir Henry Rawlinson, K.C.B., President, in the Chair.-The Secretary, Mr. Vaux, presented the annual Report, The finances were declared to be in a prosperous state, and the accessions by ballot to the Society's ranks far exceeded its losses by death and otherwise, there having been a clear gain of forty. Of the lives of deceased Fellows-Lord Lawrence, Mr. S. H. Damant, Captain Forbes, Mr. A. D. Mordtmann, and General Low-interesting obituary notices were given, as well as a slight biographical sketch of the late Professor Anton Schiefner, of St. Petersburg, who was especially eminent as a Tibetan scholar, and for his profound knowledge of the Caucasian languages. Prominent among the works in Oriental archæology for which the year had been remarkable, the first-mentioned was Major-General Cunningham's account of the archæology and architecture of the first erections of the early Buddhists. Next came Mr. Burgess's new and complete survey of the Caves of Ajanta. The last spoken of was the Babu Rajendra's exploration of the building known as Buddha Gaya, the original hermitage of Sakya Mouni, founder of the Buddhist religion.

SOCIETY FOR THE PROTECTION OF ANCIENT BUILDINGS.-May 31.-At a conference held in the hall of the Society of Arts, the Hon. Percy Wyndham, M.P., in the Chair, to take into consideration the proposed restoration of St. Mark's, Venice, Mr. J. J. Stevenson said that, having seen the building some six or seven months ago, he believed that the structure, so far as regarded its stability, was perfectly safe. The walls were quite sound, although there were some slight surface injuries, due to various causes. With regard to the so-called restora

tions, he said that the original builders of the edifice cared nothing for straight lines or accurately centred arches; they wanted beauty of form and colour. The idea of the restorers, on the other hand, was that absolute accuracy of workmanship was the main thing, and that colour was of less importance. Mr. Stevenson concluded by moving a resolution to the effect that, in view of the arrangements reported to be made for carrying on the restoration of St. Mark's, Venice, it was desirable to obtain further information, and to gather the opinion of artists and archæologists and other cultivated people throughout Europe with regard to the proposed work. Mr. Ewan Christian, in seconding the motion, dwelt upon the special charms of those irregularities which the modern workman could not, and would not, reproduce. Mr. Street enlarged somewhat upon the views expressed in a letter published by himself in The Times of May 18, and with the aid of some drawings on the blackboard explained the position of affairs at present. Mr. William Morris said that it was clear from what Mr. Street had seen that the restoration originally contemplated would have amounted to nothing less than a rebuilding of St. Mark's, and that unless the present plan of alteration was dropped this must still be practically the result. It would be very desirable, however, to take away from this agitation an exclusively English character. After defending the right of artists, architects, archeologists, and other educated men to give an opinion on such a subject, he moved the appointment of a committee, on which should be men of culture in this country, on the continent of Europe, and in America. After some discussion as to the further steps to be taken with a view of influencing public opinion in Italy, the proccedings closed with a vote of thanks to the Chairman. Among those present were the Earl of Wharncliffe, the Hon. R. C. Grosvenor, Mr. G. E. Street, R.A., Mr. W. Morris, Professor Richmond, Mr. William Rossetti, Mr. Ewan Christian, &c.

ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY.-May 20.- Mr. James Heywood, F.R.S., in the Chair.-A Paper was read by Dr. Zerffi, on "The Historical Development of Idealism and Realism ;" and by the Rev. Prebendary Irons, on "The Reconstruction of the West, from the Crowning of Charlemagne, A.D. Soo, to the Ecclesiastical Concordat with the Empire, A.D. 1122." It is proposed to establish in connexion with the Society an academy with lectureships, for promoting the science of history.

ROYAL SOCIETY OF LITERATURE.-May 26.-Sir P. de Colquhoun in the Chair.-Dr. Abel read a Paper "On the Diversity of National Thought as reflected by Language," in which he endeavoured to show that, with the exception of terms denoting material objects or expressing most ordinary sensations, the words of all languages are really different in meaning from their reputed representatives in other tongues. As nations differ in their notions, the signs expressive of these notions-i.e., the words, could not but differ in the senses they conveyed. By a comparison between French, German, and English, Dr. Abel showed that there was a considerable diversity between words seemingly identical in meaning. Such words often only corresponded partially with each other, the one having either some additional

meaning not found in the other, or the various in'gredients of their meanings being combined in different proportions, even when otherwise identical. Then, again, there were terms found in some languages but not occurring in others, in which cases, to make up for the deficiency, it was necessary to use paraphrase. Dr. Abel then pointed out that only thoughts common to a whole nation, or to large sections of a nation, are embodied in single words, and hence drew the conclusion that the finer shades of national character are most effectually ascertained by a comparison of synonyms.

PROVINCIAL.

SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF SCOTLAND.-June 14-Professor Duns, D.D., V.P., in the Chair.-The first Paper read was on the "Traditions of the Macaulays of Lewis," by Captain F. W. L. Thomas, R.N., F.S.A. (Scot.) The clan Aulay takes its name from the Gaelic form of the Scandinavian Olaf. There are thirty of this name registered in the "Icelandic Land-book," and thirty-five are noticed in the "Annals of the Four Masters." In the mythical history of Lewis the Macaulays are the descendants of Amhlaebh, one of the twelve sons of Olvir Rosta, whose authentic history is given in the "Orkneyinga Saga," and who is otherwise said to have been the eldest son of that Norse King of the Isles who had the kingdom given to him by a son of Kenneth M'Alpin. The want of any real tradition as to the first of the Macaulays has been supplied by historical induction. In 1188, Reginald, son of Gottred, became King of Man, and his brother Olaf had Lewis in appanage. In 1226 Olaf became King of Man and the Isles, but there is no tradition whatever of him in the Lewis, and there is historical proof that a Macaulay was settled in the island long before his time. It is recorded in the "Orkneyinga Saga" that Gunni Olafson (that is, Macaulay) the brother of Swein of Gairsay, was expelled from the Orkneys by Earl Harald, and fled to the Lewis, where he was received by the chief Liotolf, who was, no doubt, the first of the Macleods. learn from the traditions of the Mackenzies that the Macaulays were once dominant in Lochbroom, and this is confirmed by the fact that Ullapool is an old Norse name, meaning the homestead of Olaf. Captain Thomas quoted at length from Dr. G. Mackenzie's manuscript "History of the Mackenzies," and the Earl of Cromartie's "Genealogy of the Mackensies," the "Chronicle of Ross" and other incidental sources of the history of the Macaulays, subjecting the whole to a critical examination, so as to extract from them a consistent history of the Macaulays in Ross-shire. then gave a careful and elaborate résumé of the traditional history of the Lewis clan Macaulay, whose name, in consequence of the genius of one of its members, is now known throughout the civilized world. Their traditions were drawn from various sources, but chiefly from the work of Donald Morrison of Stornoway, in nine manuscript volumes, of which the first is nearly filled with the traditions of the Macaulays. The other volumes contain the traditional history of the Morrisons, Macleods, and Mackenzies, with a large collection of genuine traditions of the Long Island, Skye, and Mull, and translations of genuine Ossianic poetry, which are, of course, very different from that

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He

manufactured by Macpherson.-The second Paper, by the Rev. J. Gammack, gave an account of the discovery of two bronze swords in Kincardineshire, which have been presented to the museum by Mr. Burnet. The next paper was a description of a bonecave of great extent, and apparently of much interest, recently discovered in Colonsay by Mr. Symington Grieve. The cave contains several chambers, making a total of about 230 feet. Some of these contain local deposits of stalagmite, and underneath it successive layers of ashes, charcoal, and broken bones of the ordinary domestic animals-viz., the ox, sheep, and horse; also bones of fishes and quantities of periwinkles and other shells.-In the next Paper, Mr. David Marshall, who has been employed by Sir. G. Montgomery to arrange the MSS. in the charter-room at Kinross House, communicated an account of the discovery there of the original contracts with Robert Mylne, the King's master mason, for the rebuilding of Holyrood Palace in 1671. A querulous letter from the Duke of Lauderdale, complaining of the palace not being made habitable by the time he required to lodge in it, is dated in October of that year. The contract for the demolition of the whole old pile of buildings and their reconstruction, amounts to £4200; but there is a second contract in March, 1676, of £324; and a third, dated July, 1672, for £350.-The next Paper was a notice of the unprinted chartulary of St. Andrew of Northampton, a fine folio MS. of 304 leaves of vellum, preserved among the Cottonian MSS. in the British Museum, by Mr. Joseph Bain, F.S.A., Scot. An abstract of the charters of the Scottish kings and princes, as Earls of Huntingdon, and other nobles, was given.-Mr. Romilly Allen, C.E., communicated a note with a drawing of a standing stone near Ford, Argyleshire, which exhibits a cross with a well-marked cup in connection with it. Mr. Franks, of the British Museum, communicated a translation of a report by Mr. Worsaae, Vice-President of the Royal Society of Northern Antiquaries, Copenhagen, on the preservation of national antiquities and monuments in Denmark.

BATH NATURAL HISTORY AND ANTIQUARIAN FIELD CLUB.-May 25.-The members visited Lydney Park, Gloucestershire, the seat of Mr. Charles Bathurst, through whose courtesy they were permitted to inspect the antiquities of the park, including fragments of Roman pavements, some coins, &c. The Vice-President (the Rev. Prebendary Scarth) read a Paper on the remains of the Roman villa which has been discovered in Lydney, Park. The first discovery was made more than a century ago, when the walls were three feet above the ground, but as time went on they gradually disappeared. Since the beginning of the present century, however, the Bathursts have preserved whatever has been discovered.

BATLEY (YORKSHIRE) ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY.— May 10.-Mr. M. S. Scholefield, V.P., in the Chair.— Mr. Charles Hobart read a Paper on "The Comparative Antiquity of Dewsbury and Batley," in which he remarked that there was no place, perhaps, in Yorkshire which could compare with Batley in the wealth of tradition and legendary lore. Batley was entitled to far higher antiquity than had yet been accorded her; her records and her traditions went