Genre:

News-Commentary, Drollery

Subjects:

Societies, Geology, Spiritualism

    Begins with an extract from a report on the British Association for the Advancement of Science meeting at Exeter announcing that John Phillips will 'deliver a discourse on Vesuvius'. Playing on the word 'on', considers it 'impossible' that Phillips could be in Exeter and Vesuvius, unless 'he has the power of being in two places at once. Suggests that this 'singular phenomenon' might be mentioned by the next association president, Thomas H Huxley, and congratulates Huxley for being elected to this position.