82 



Mr. Hind did not think any practical difficulty had arisen beyond the loss of 

 time— for instance, at the meeting in last June there were six gentlemen to be 

 elected, 10 were proposed , and the number had, according to the rule, to bo 

 reduced to nine. This involved the taking of 10 shows of hands, which occupied 

 quite 20 minutes. Further than this, he would suggest that it was not in 

 accordance with the principle of the ballot to decide any part of an election by 

 show of hands. 



The President thought they were bound to carry out the principle of the 

 ballot in its entirety. 



The Secretary said there had been several instances in former years in which 

 members had been nominated, and had afterwards felt annoyed by the small 

 number of hands held up for them ; whereas if their names had been put into 

 the list a larger number might have voted for them at the annual meeting. 



Mr. Hailes said that, as an old member of the committee who was present 

 when this rule was framed, it might be well for him to explain why this clause 

 was originally introduced. It was thought at that time that a great number of 

 members might like to propose friends as members of committee, and would 

 thus give them a very large number of names to print on the lists ; and the pro- 

 vision was made in order to reduce the number within a reasonable limit. 

 Practically it was electing some of them twice over ; but at all events the diffi- 

 culty provided against had never arisen, showing that there was really no 

 necessity for retaining the clause. 



The alteration proposed was then put to the meeting, and carried unani- 

 mously. 



The other alteration proposed by Mr. Hind was then explained by him to be 

 the partial revival of the rule as it stood in 1868, and its effect would be to place 

 the nominations of Vice-Presidents in the hands of the committee, instead of 

 in those of the members. He believed that only on one occasion had a member 

 of the club exercised the privilege of nominating a Vice-President ; and although 

 no doubt there might be occasions when members would like to elect some par- 

 ticular person in order to do him special honour, this alteration would really 

 place no actual difficulty in the way of this being done. 

 This alteration was seconded by Mr. George Williams. 



Mr. James Smith believed it was quite the practice in the Eoyal, Linnean, 

 and other Scientific Societies, for the Vice-Presidents to be nominated by the 

 Council, and therefore they would only be following the usual course in leaving 

 these nominations with the committee. 



Mr. Hailes said that at the time the rule was made, placing the appointment 

 both of Vice-Presidents and committee in the hands of the club, it was felt that 

 the club generally took no active part in the nomination of its officers, and the 

 committee were desirous of abandoning the principle of the house list. In their 

 anxiety to force the club to elect their committee themselves, the nominations 

 of the Vice-Presidents were also put upon them. The office of the Vice- 

 President was really the only honour they had to bestow, because in all the 

 other offices the amount of work and time to be given rendered it rather a 

 favour to the club for any one to accept them. This being so he thought the 

 nominations were much better placed in the hands of the committee, who could 

 form a better judgment than individual members as to who were, in considera- 

 tion of their work or services, most worthy of the honour at their disposal. 



The President said he was cognizant of at least one instance in which a gen- 

 tleman was proposed and elected a Vice-President without his consent having 



