An Old Minute-Book

to carve it into neat joints and steaks. But as men multiplied upon the earth, and tribes were formed, warfare arose,, and men began to seek out the most vital parts of the humani body. Offerings andi sacrifices were made to propitiate the gods before these wars; and whenl cannibalism was evolved, human flesh, the scarcest andC Imlost valued form of food, was the natural offering at the altar, and man the most (desirable sacrifice to the gods. Anatomical interest was, in this way, transferre(d by a natural sequence of events to the priesthoo(l. Here interest in anatomy remaine(d until the practice of embalming the (lead body for the use of the soul for all time caused a special sect of priests to be set aside for this particular purpose. It is therefore not surprising to find that the earliest beginnings of dis-section and anatomical study should be found in Egypt, in the work of the special priests, the embalmers, and that the first real scientific anatomists should be foun(d at a later date in Alexandria, the intellectual centre of ancient Egypt. I HAVE before me as I write a Milnute-book which was openled on 7th May, 1860, and has nowv been closed, the last entry having beeni made on 28th April, 1938. For sevenity-eight years there have been faithfully recordled in its pages the transactions of the Belfast Brainch of the Royal Medical Betnevolent Fund Society of Ireland. 'I'he book itself is bound in leather, andl anl expert assures me that "one would pay a pretty penny for paper of that quality in a minute-book nowadays"-but money went further in 1860, and a pound purchased more. 'lThe first entry records "a meeting of Committee held in the Library Room of (Doctor Purdon was "permanienit presi(dent," and himself a most generous supporter of the Charity. ".. . 'he treasurer (Doctor S. Brown-e, father of' Sir Walton Browne) "reported that he had now in hands the sum of £113. 2s. 6cd. as the proceeds of the past year of the Branch." 'Phe names of four ladlies wvere forwarde(d to headlquarters as suitable recipients of granlts, anld then the minutes go on as follows :-"The secretary reported that, agreeabl) to the instructions given to hitm at last meeting, he had transmitted as many as 134 printedl appeals to the profession throughout the district, the practical responises to which, lhowever, did not exce,ed …