204 Royal Colonial Institute. 



Avenue. The second we are carrying out to the full extent of our resources, and we 

 hope, as these resources continue to increase, we shall be able to do more in this 

 direction. These two objects are, however, solely for the purpose of preparing the 

 way for the accomplishment of the third object, laid down in our Charter, viz. " the 

 preservation of the unity of the Empire " ; and it must never be forgotten that it was 

 solely for this object that the Institute was called into existence. I wish to emphasise 

 this as much as possible, as there seems to be a tendency on the part of some of our 

 Fellows to consider that the first two objects which I have mentioned are the chief 

 and only work before us. 



Among the Eoyal Societies which exist in this country, the Eoyal Colonial Institute 

 is the only one which has a great poUtical object to accomplish. No one will deny 

 that that object — the promotion of the closer union of the Empire — is the greatest 

 poUtical question of the day. It is one far above all the party pohtics of the different 

 parts of the Empire, and therefore it is one in which all British subjects can join in 

 carrying out. 



Now as to what our poUcy should be in the immediate future. We must continue 

 to strengthen and improve our organisation in every way : 



(a) To begin with, we require a working president to give us the benefit of his 

 advice and assistance in the policy we should carry out. 



(6) We also require a working council. The Council consists of sixty-three 

 Fellows, and includes a President, thirty-eight Vice-Presidents and twenty-four 

 Councillors, aU elected by the Fellows. Six of the Vice-Presidents are non-resident 

 and therefore unable to attend, and most of the others, and also the Councillors, are 

 busy men and, of course, find it difiicult or impossible to attend the meetings regularly. 



(c) We must therefore throw more responsibility upon the different Committees, 

 and perfect them in every possible way, because it is only through these Committees 

 that the work of the Institute can be carried out. A good deal has lately been done 

 to strengthen them by the appointment of Fellows outside the Council, who have a 

 large experience of the work to be done by the Committee to which they are appointed. 

 We have also adopted a system of permanent Chairmen to each of these Committees, 

 and thereby rendered them much more efficient. 



It must be remembered that a Council, however eminent its members may be, 

 do not initiate matters for discussion, or, as a rule, propose new departures. In its 

 working it is essentially conservative, and therefore, if progress is to be made, any new 

 movements tending to that end are much better worked out by small Committees 

 who submit the result of their labours to the consideration of a Council. This creates 

 a system of decentralisation which is so absolutely necessary for success, provided, 

 of course, that it is subject to the general control of a central authority, which in this 

 case would be the Council. 



{d) Every efiort must be made to increase our membership, and with it out income. 

 After all it is the Fellows themselves who can do more in this matter than our Corre- 

 sponding Secretaries or the Staff of the Institute ; and we take this opportunity of 

 appealing to all of you here to-day, and also to every Fellow throughout the Empire, 

 to assist us to increase our membership. If each one of you will resolve to use your 

 utmost endeavour to propose only one Fellow for election during the year, we shall 

 double our Fellows and our income, and do as much in this present year to advance 

 the interests of the Institute as we have done during the whole of the forty-three years 

 of its existence. 



(e) There is another and most important step which I think ought, if possible, 



