528 Proceedings. 



The estimates obtained by the Secretary from London firms of the cost o: 

 producing coloured illustrations have been considered by the Committee, whicir 

 recommends that the question be held over till the finances of the Institute are in 

 a better condition. 



Towards the end of the year the Hon. Editor I'esigned owing to the pressure of 

 other work. Arrangements have been made for papers intended for the next volume 

 of the Transactions to be sent to the Secretary pending the appointment of an 

 Hon. Editor at the annual meeting. 



For the Committee. 



Chas. Chilton, 



Retiring Hon. Editor. 



It was proposed by Dr. Cockayne, seconded by Mr. Poyntoii, That 

 a sum of £50 be voted out of the Hutton Memorial Fund towards the 

 publication of the researches of Major Broun on New Zealand 

 Goleoptera. — Carried. 



On the motion of Dr. J. Allan Thomson, seconded by Dr. Hilgendorf, 

 it was resolved. That the Publication Committee be directed to insert a 

 notice in the Transactions stating the privileges of inembers in relation 

 to the libraries of the Institute and of the incorporated societies. 



Report of the Library Committee. — Tlie report of the Committee was 

 adopted, as follows : — 



Report of Library Committee. 



The rearrangement of the library, forecasted in the report of last year, has been 

 completed, and it is now possible to trace easily the publications of any given 

 society or institution. Your Committee feels that the facilities offered by the 

 library are not understood by the majority of members outside Wellington, and 

 recommends that a notice should be inserted annually in the Transactions stating 

 the privileges of members and the conditions under which books may be lent 

 through the post. The Librarian is always willing to answer queries from indi- 

 vidual members as to whether or not any given book is in the library. 



Although a large number of valuable journals are received annually in exchange 

 for the Transactions, the number of societies with whom exchanges ar« effected 

 bears a very small proportion to the number of societies which publish papers 

 likely to be of interest to scientific workers in New Zealand, while the absence 

 of many societies of the first importance from the exchange list is a matter of 

 surprise and regret. This has a double aspect, for it means also that the Trans- 

 actions are not available to, and are therefore not read by, the majority of scientific 

 workers outside New Zealand. For instance, only seventeen universities and 

 colleges outside New Zealand appear in the list of free copies, while in .1914 only 

 seventeen copies were sold outside the Dominion. Your Committee has therefore 

 drawn up §1 list of over eight hundred societies and institutions with which 

 exchanges might be effected, and recommends that proposals to two hundred of 

 these should be made during the current year. 



J. Allan Thomson, 



Hon. Librarian. 



Dr. J. Allan Thomson moved. Dr. Cockayne seconded, and it was 

 unanimously resolved. That a set of the publications as complete as 

 possible be presented to the University of Louvain. 



The Secretary explained the difficulty which had aiisen with regard 

 to the storage of the large excess of the back numbers of the Transactions, 

 and detailed the steps taken by the Standing Conmiittee in circularizing 

 libraries. A letter from the Hon. the Minister of Internal Affairs, dated 

 the 26th November, 1915, was read dealing with the same subject. 



On the motion of Dr. J. Allan Thomson it was resolved, That the 

 Standing Committee be authorized to dispose of the stock of Transactions 

 for those years in which the number is in excess of 200 by gift to suitable 

 institutions or by sale at reduced terms. 



