12 REPORT OF THE 



Among the Donations to the Library, the Council have to notice 

 with peculiar satisfaction, a valuable work, by the Society's highly 

 respected Treasurer, Robert Davies, Esq., whose " Extracts from 

 the Municipal Records of the City of York,'" to which his official con- 

 nection with the Corporation afforded him a ready access, accom- 

 panied with many curious " illustrative and explanatory notes," have 

 thrown much light on the history of York during that portion of 

 the 15th Century which comprised the reigns of the three last kings 

 of the Plantagenet race. The valuable Transactions of the various 

 Scientific Societies continue to be received as usual. The Council 

 hope that, by some changes which they propose to make during 

 the present year, the Library will be rendered more available to 

 the purposes for which it was intended. 



The Laboratory continues in the same active service as usual. 

 The regular course of Lectures to the Pupils of the York School of 

 Medicine is in course of delivery ; and the Laboratory is well stocked 

 with the requisites for general purposes. Some slight alterations 

 will however be necessary previous to the meeting of the British 

 Association. 



Though the usual Astronomical Observations have been continued 

 at the Observatory, the great want of proper instruments has pre- 

 vented the Curator from remarking many interesting celestial 

 phenomena, which have occurred during the past year. He has 

 recently commenced a course of Lectures on Astronomy, by the 

 proceeds of which he hopes, in part, to supply this deficiency ; and 

 the Council trust, ere long, to be able to make a grant for the 

 same object. 



The Curator of Meteorological Instruments has continued the 

 Horary Observations at the Equinoxes and Solstices, which were 

 commenced in 1 842 ; and they have been regularly forwarded to the 

 zealous and indefatigable M. Quetelet, of the Royal Academy of 

 Brussels, and acknowledged by him. 



The following are the results of these observations for the past 

 year. 



Vernal Equinox, Mean of 24 Obs, 49® occurring bet. 8 and 9 a.m. and 7 & 8 P.M. 



Summer Solstice 24 ... . 56.8" 7 and 8 a.m. and 7 & 8 p.m. 



Autumnal Equinox 24 57.90 7 and 8 a.m. and 7 & 8 p.m. 



Winter Solstice 24 42.8« 10 and 11 a.m. and 3 &4p.m. 



