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LXXXVI. Proceedings of Learned Societies. 



ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY*. 



Extracts from the Report of the Council to the Twenty -second Annual 

 General Meeting, held this day. 



Feb. 11, A MONGST the losses by death, the Council have here 

 1842. •£*• to notice one among the Foreign members, which was 

 announced at the last anniversary, namely, that of Professor Littrow 

 of Vienna, who was one of the earliest members of this Society. 

 He contributed several papers which were read at the meetings, and 

 which have been printed in the first four volumes of the Memoirs, 

 exhibiting a spirit of research and inquiry into a variety of subjects 

 connected not only with astronomy, but also with other hranches of 

 physical science. He was also the author of a valuable Treatise on 

 Astronomy, in three volumes octavo, in the German language, and 

 continued, till the time of his death, to conduct the affairs of the Im- 

 perial Observatory at Vienna. 



The Council have also to regret the loss of Mr. Frend, lately one 

 of the Members of the Council of the Society. 



William Frend was the son of George Frend, an alderman of 

 Canterbury, in which city he was born, November 22, 1757. He 

 received his education in his native place, at the King's School ; and, 

 after staying some time at St. Omer, was placed in a mercantile 

 house at Quebec ; but the breaking out of the disturbances in Ame- 

 rica destroyed his commercial prospects, and he returned to En- 

 gland. His wishes being directed towards the Church, he was 

 placed at Christ's College, Cambridge, in 1775, and took the degree 

 of B.A., with the honour of second wrangler, in 1780. After taking 

 his degree, he almost immediately removed to Jesus College, of which 

 he was elected fellow and tutor. In 1783 he was ordained, and 

 afterwards obtained the living of Madingley, near Cambridge. In 

 1787, a change in his religious opinions took place, which ended in 

 his adoption of the views of the Unitarians. The resignation of his 

 living and the loss of the tutorship followed of course ; but the laws 

 of the University still allowed him to retain his fellowship. After 

 some years of travel he returned to Cambridge, and occupied him- 

 self further in the study of Hebrew and divinity. In 1793, a pam- 

 phlet, entitled " Peace and Union recommended to the Associated 

 Bodies of Republicans and Anti-republicans," was published by him, 

 which contained distinct expressions of dislike to the doctrines and 

 discipline of the Established Church. Immediately upon the publica- 

 tion of this pamphlet, both his college and various members of the 

 senate commenced proceedings against Mr. Frend. The master and 

 fellows of the former (by seven to four) " removed " him from re- 

 sidence in college, until proof of " good behaviour," and this sen- 

 tence was confirmed by the visitor. Thirty-four members of the 

 senate cited the author of the pamphlet before the Vice-chancellor 



[• A notice of the proceedings of the Society for January will be found 

 at p. 397, and of those for March at p. 477 of the present volume.] 



