1886.] SOCIETIES. 077 



The Treasurer (Mr. J. Davidson) then read the financial report as 

 follows : — 



Balance in hand from last year's account, £23, 8s.; subscriptions 

 received from ordinary members, £29, Is. 6d, ; from life members, 

 £10 ; received for advertisements in published transactions, £2, 7s.; 

 total, £65, 6s. 6d. Payments — Paid for use of rooms for meetings, 

 9s. 6d. ; printing and stationery, £4, 5s.; postages, £3, lis. 4d. ; 

 expenses in connection with lectures by Dr. Lyons, £2, Is. Gd. ; 

 excursion to Cragside, £2, 19s. 4d. ; publication of transactions, 

 £9, 15s.; auditing accounts, £2, 2s.; salary of secretary and 

 treasurer, £10 ; total, £35, 3s. 8d. ; balance in hand, £30, 2s. lOd. 

 Although the balance is £30. 2s. lOd., there were arrears of sub- 

 scriptions, which, when paid up, would bring the balance up to 

 £45, Os. 4d. Of this sum, £29, 8s. was contributed by life 

 members. 



Councillor Gray moved, and Mr. Wm. Fell seconded, that the 

 accounts be adopted, which was agreed to. 



Mr. J. W. Ptobson moved that out of the balance in hand £30 

 be invested in the name of and for the benefit of the Society. 



Councillor Gray seconded the proposition, remarking that the 

 subscription of life members should not be looked upon as current 

 income. 



The motion was unanimously agreed to. 



With regard to the essays on Larch Disease, to be written by 

 members of the Society, it was decided that the first prize should 

 be a silver medal value £3, and the second a medal value £1, 



Mr. Balden, in accordance with notice given at last year's annual 

 meeting, proposed an alteration in rule 12 of the Society's rules. 

 The rule at present read : " Tlie affairs of the Society shall be con- 

 ducted by a president, twelve vice-presidents, secretary, treasurer, 

 two auditors, and twenty-one councillors — these ofdce- bearers to be 

 elected annually at the general meeting in November — the two 

 vice-presidents at the top of the list to retire by rotation annually, 

 but one shall be eligible for re-election ; the five councillors at 

 the top of the list shall retire by rotation annually, but shall be 

 eligible for re-election." He thought that the objection was only 

 one vice-president retiring. It might be thought that they favoured 

 one more than the other. He would propose that they should delete 

 the word one, and make the rule read, " but shall be eligible for 

 re-election." He would also propose that all the retiring councillors 

 should, in future, be eligible for re-election. 



The Chairman said he wished to call their attention to another 

 matter. In most other societies they changed their presidents every 

 year. He thought that they should make the Earl of Durham a 



