212 Royal Colonial Institute. 



to settle themselves. To an ever-increasing majority emigration presents one of the 

 means of bettering the state of afiairs, and it was a great inspiration on the part of 

 the Council to bring together in conference the whole of the societies engaged in emi- 

 gration, and then to form a standing committee to whose proposals the Institute could 

 lend the weight of its authority. Colonel Eawson considered that to the Council was 

 due a hearty vote of thanks for its action in this matter, and he wished them every 

 success. 



The Eeport was adopted. 



Mr. Frederick Button moved the following alteration in Eule 43 : — 



That the following words commencing on line 4 of Rule 43 be deleted : — " For the 

 following year but shall not hold such office for more than two consecutive years." 



Rule 43 at present reads : — 



The President, when present, presides at all Meetings of the CouncU and of 

 the FeUows. The Council shall annually elect a Chairman of the Council, 

 who shaU hold office for one year, and shall be eligible for re-election 

 for the following year, but shall not hold such office for more than two 

 consecutive years, and shall preside in the absence of the President. In 

 the absence of the President, and of the Chairman of Council, one of the 

 Vice-Presidents, or one of the Members of the Council, shall supply the 

 place of the President or Chairman of Council. 



It had been said that what the Institute wanted was a working Chairman. They 

 had one at the present moment in the person of Sir J. Bevan Edwards, and the Council 

 were anxious to keep him. In the old days they had a permanent but not a working 

 Chairman, and that not answering very satisfactorily, the Council for many years went 

 on the basis of having a different member to preside at each of its meetings. It was 

 obviously impossible under these circumstances to have a working Chairman, and in 

 times of emergency the Secretary was placed in a difficult position in having no one 

 with whom he could consult. It was partly owing to that circumstance, perhaps, 

 that the administration of the Institute came to require a little wakiiig up, and 

 some three years ago they were wakened up ; and one of the results was the adoption 

 of a new set of rules. Under Rule 43 the Council elected annually a Chairman, Sir 

 Bevan Edwards being the first. He was the representative of the Coimcil in the 

 mquiries before the Committee that brought about the new arrangements, and was 

 brimful of knowledge in the matter of initiating further directions for enterprise. So 

 satisfactory did the Council find the procedure under his chairmanship that they 

 unanimously elected him a second time. Then came the trouble under Rule 43, and 

 £0 the members were asked last year to suspend the operation of the rule so that he 

 might be re-elected. The Council were very desirous that he should continue in office. 

 In his address he had indicated ideas which were his ovm and which were what one 

 expected from a working Chairman. A working Chairman was constantly in attendance 

 at the Institute, thinking of methods in which the work could be improved, and bring- 

 ing before the Council a variety of matters, so that he was a very important member 

 indeed of the administrative body. The Coimcil could, of course, have asked the 

 meeting to accept a suspension of the rule as they did last year, but the matter had 

 been discussed and he for one entertained a very strong objection to that procedure. 

 Indeed, he had doubts as to whether that was a legal way of dealing with the matter. 

 He wished to take this opportunity of expressmg his personal admiration of the energy 

 and enthusiasm which Sir J. Bevan Edwards had thrown into his work and from which 



