LINNEAN SOCIETY OF LONDON. XI 



May 24th, 1858. 



Thomas Bell, Esq., President, in the Chair. 



This day, the Anniversary of the birth of Linnaeus, and the day 

 appointed by the Charter for the Election of Council and Officers, 

 the President opened the business of the Meeting with the fol- 

 lowing Address : — 



G-ENTLEMEN, 



"When I first ventured to break through the previous custom of 

 the Society, by offering an address to the Eellows at the Anni- 

 versary, I felt that I must not depend upon always finding, in the 

 annual retrospect of our own doings, sufficient subject for the 

 occupation and amusement of the time allotted to that object. 



On one or two former occasions I had indeed many circum- 

 stances of interest to communicate to you, relative to our removal 

 to the place of what I trust may prove our permanent abode, and 

 I last year took the advantage which that event offered me, of 

 adverting to the foundation, development and results of our 

 Society. As long as our circumstances were changing and our 

 final destiny was in abeyance or suspense, there were subjects 

 constantly presenting themselves sufficiently interesting to occupy 

 a due portion of the time which intervenes between the initiatory 

 routine of the day's business, and the final ceremony of the open- 

 ing of the ballot glasses. But the very settlement of our diffi- 

 culties, and the solution of our doubts, whilst filling us with the 

 happy sense of the fruition of our hopes and wishes, deprive me 

 of such themes for my address, and throw me again upon the 

 consideration of some of those means of increasing the prosperity 

 and thus extending the usefulness of our Society, which are indi- 

 cated by daily experience, and the ever-changing and progressing 

 march of natural knowledge. 



"When I last addressed you on a similar occasion to the present, 

 we had just entered upon the occupation of our new abode. We 

 could not then consider ourselves settled, scarcely even secure ; 

 but a twelvemonth's occupancy has now removed all doubt of the 

 absolute enjoyment of the advantages which we then only believed 

 in, and might almost tempt us to yield to a feeling of quiet and 

 satisfied security, and to adopt the sentiment of the Poet, 



" Invenimus portum ; spes et fortuna, valete ! " 



