Early Scientific Journals in Victoria
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The ambiguous announcement in The Herald (10 September 1855, p. 6) referred to above states "Proceedings of the Philosophical Institute.—We are glad . . . to announce that this volume, which has been some time in preparation, will be published to-day. . . ." No details of contents are given and therefore it is not possible to be certain which publication the announcement refers to. Although the Philosophical Institute is cited the date precludes the publication from being one produced by that amalgamated body. Instead, when considered in relation to other dated evidence given under item C (and bearing in mind that 8th and 9th September were a Saturday and Sunday) the date of The Herald announcement and the word "Philosophical" suggests that the work to be published that day was volume one (complete) of the transactions of the earlier Philosophical Society. This suggestion is reinforced by the allusion to the work having been "some time in preparation", a statement consistent with the delay documented by earlier extracts quoted under item C. The alternative suggestion that the work was the transactions of the Victorian Institute (item A) gains some credence when the words of the newspaper announcement are compared with those of an introductory, full-page notice titled "Advertisement" published at the commencement of the Victorian Institute transactions. Both the announcement and the advertisement refer, in respective order but in different words, to the varied nature of the papers, the expertness of their authors, the contribution of the papers towards furtherance of Victorian development, the popular style of writing and the hope of sales to the general public. The Herald announcement appears to be simply a rephrased copy of the advertisement published with the transactions themselves.
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