42 PROCEEDINGS AT GENERAL MEETINGS. 



seventy medals of the value of £25 14s. 6d. have been awarded. Several of the 

 reports showed that tlie various committees had taken much trouble in making the 

 awards, there being 97 competitors for the cottage premiums, and no fewer than 357 

 for the gardens or garden jiroduce. The state of the interior and exterior of the cottages, 

 as Avell as the choice and quality of the crops of the gardens, are generally reported 

 to be very good ; while many of those to whom prizes were given are described as 

 excellent. For 1880, the directors have to ask the meeting to sanction similar pre- 

 miums in thirty-one parishes or districts. 



The " Transactions." — The Secretary said that in the absence of Sheriff Irvine, 

 who was oljliged to be in Argyllshire on magisterial business, and of the Rev. Mr 

 Gillespie, the mover of the motion which led to the appointment of the committee, 

 who was unable to be present owing to the death of a relative, it devolved upon him 

 to present their report on the " Transactions." He moved that the report, which was 

 adopted by the directors, be approved of by "the meeting ; and that the necessary 

 authority be given to the directors to carry it out. The report is as follows : — 



Report by Special Comjiittee of the Highland and Agricultural Society on the 

 Mode of Procuring Papers for Publication in the " Ti-ansactions " of the Society. 



At the Anniversary General Meeting of the Society, held on the 15th of January 1879, 

 it was resolved, on the motion of the Rev. John Gillespie, Monswald, " That a Com- 

 mittee, composed of Directors and other members of the Society, be apjiointed to con- 

 sider and report what improvements, if any, can be made in the '' Transactions '' of the 

 Society, and especially whether any change in the present mode of procuring papers 

 for publication can be introduced with advantage — the report to be made public before 

 the General Meeting of the Society in January 1880, with the view of its being disposed 

 of at said meeting." 



The Committee appointed consisted of Mr Elliot, East Nisbet ; Rev. John Gillespie, 

 Mr Hutchison of Carlowrie, Mr Irvine of Drum, Mr Mackenzie of Portmore, Mr Newton 

 of Castlandhill, Mr David Stevenson, C.E. ; Mr Scot Skirving, Edmburgh ; Mr Walker 

 of Rowland, C.B. ; Professor Wilson — Mr Irvine of Drum, convener. 



The Committee met on the 29th October and 26th November, and having considered 

 the matter remitted to them, and heard the opinions of the several members, beg to 

 make the following suggestions : — 



I. That the present system of procuring approved reports and other papers by com- 

 petition should be restricted to subjects which are of acknowledged importance, and to 

 such as are specially suitalde for a competitive system ; that all the reports under this 

 head must be of a practical character, containing the results of the writer's own obser- 

 vation or experiment. 



II. That the Standing. Committee on Publications should fix additional subjects, and 

 procure from well-qualihed writers papiers ujjon them. The main reasons for suggesting 

 this branch are — First, Because many of the members and others best qualified to 

 contribute to the literature of the Society have either not done so at all under the 

 competitive system, or at most to a much more limited extent than is desirable : and 

 ■whUe an increase in the prizes offered would probably not induce them to compete, it 

 is believed they would respond to an invitation addressed to them personally, in the 

 name of the Society, to supjjly papers on specified subjects, regarding which they are 

 acknowledged authorities. Second, Some important subjects are of a nature unfitted for 

 competition, such as those regarding which personal inquiry at a considerable number 

 of individuals is necessary. 



III. That it should be more generally known, by occasional advertisement in the 

 newspapers or otherwise, that the Society will welcome papers from any contributor 

 on any suitable subject ; and that if the topic and the treatment of it are both approved, 

 the writer will be remunerated and his j^aper published. This branch has long been 

 notified in the premium list, and is continued, because it might induce volunteer writers 

 to supjily valuable pajjers on subjects which might not be embraced in either of the 

 other parts of the scheme. 



IV. That the Committee should obtain the service of well-qualified persons, who would 

 supply to the " Transactions" abstracts of the most important piapers on agriculture, both 

 in home and foreign journals, so as to render the "Traasactions" a kind of mirror of the 

 progress at the time! 



The plan of the work would thus comprehend the following heads or divisions : — 1. 

 Reports received under the competitive system. 2. Rejjorts on selected subjects by 

 competent writers. 3. Reports by volunteer ^\Titers on subjects not embraced in 

 either of the two first heads. 4. Abstracts of papers on agricultural subjects from 

 home and foreign journals. 5. Reports on the progress of the experiments at the 

 Society stations ; abstracts of reports at board and general meetings ; and other official 

 documents. 



This repjort was app)roved of. 



