210 MEMORIES OF MY LIFE 



meeting in the Journal of the Association have been 

 so toned down that no one would suspect from 

 reading them what really took place. 



My connection with the Royal Geographical 

 Society was a long one, and I served for many years 

 on its Council, but the time came when my deafness 

 was an insuperable bar to utility. On Sir Clement 

 Markham becoming President, he very kindly offered 

 me the vacant post of Trusteeship, which carries with 

 it a permanent place on the Council, and is not 

 practically a burden ; but I was compelled to decline, 

 and have taken no direct part in furthering its 

 interests since that time, but have confined my work 

 to other pursuits. 



I had a hand in many actions of the Society. 

 In its earlier years there was good cause of com- 

 plaint as to the method in which the Society was 

 being worked. Mr. Spottiswoode and myself were 

 the Joint Hon. Secretaries, and the necessary reform 

 was only brought about by our simultaneous resigna- 

 tion on the ground that our urgent remonstrances 

 were shelved by the then President. It was agreed 

 between us that, to save appearances, Spottiswoode 

 should continue to act for a short time longer, being 

 earnestly requested to do so. 



In due course a new Assistant Secretary was 

 appointed, and after some failures to secure a man 

 capable of worthily filling that important post, we 

 had the good fortune to find and appoint Mr. H. W. 

 Bates ( 1 825-1 892). He was remarkably well informed 

 on geographical matters, had been a considerable 

 traveller in companionship with Alfred Russell 

 Wallace in South America, and was one of the first 



