KEPOET OF THE COUNCIL 



VHESENTEl) TO 



THE ANNUAL MEETING. 



General Position of the Society. 

 In presenting tlieir Rei^ort at the close of the 40th year of the Society's 

 existence the Council have much pleasure in congratulating the Fellows 

 upon its continued and increasing prosperity and vitality. 



The number of Fellows is now 437. Eleven were elected during the 

 past year in excess of the number elected in 1877, and twelve nominations 

 for Fellowship have been received since the beginning of this year. 



Finances. 

 The Finances of the Society are in a very satisfactory condition. The 

 Annual Income is now larger than at any j)revious time ; whilst as regards 

 Capital, the funds invested in Consols and India Stock, together with the 

 Cash in hand, amount to upwards of 2100Z., as will be seen from the 

 Treasurer's Accounts presented with this Eeport. 



New Booms. 

 The Council are glad to be able to announce that negotiations are 

 pending with the authorities of King's College, by which it is anticipated 

 that the Society will have the use of more commodious and convenient rooms. 



Library, Instruments, &c. 



The Council thought it prudent to limit the expenditure during the past 

 year on the Library, Instruments, and Apparatus, on account of the difficulty 

 that existed in forming any reliable estimate of the probable cost of tho 

 Journal, but now that that expenditure has been ascertained, and having 

 regard to the amount of the Society's Capital, they see no reason why the 

 full siu'plus of Income should not be annually expended in additions to the 

 Library and Ai)paratus, leaving only the composition fees to accumulate in 

 future for the benefit of the Capital Account. 



Several valuable additions have, however, been made to the Library 

 during the past year, including (from Mr. Crisp) 27 volumes of the ' Annales 

 des Sciences Natm-elles,' 10 volumes of the 'Zeitschrift fiir wissenschaftliche 

 Zoologie,' and 6 volumes of ' Grevillea,' together with other works. The 

 Council have also accepted from the same Fellow a Cabinet for the Instru- 

 ments, &c., and additions have been made to the Apparatus and Objects. 



A detailed and very complete Catalogue of the Instruments and Appa- 

 ratus has been made by Mr. Fox. The revision of the Library Catalogue, 

 and the re-arrangement of the Books according to subjects was also deter- 

 mined upon, but these matters have necessarily been postj^oned in conse- 

 quence of the contemplated change of rooms. 



Journal. 



The Council have been gratified to learn that the new series of the 

 Journal has met with general approval. A leading feature of the Journal 

 (apart from the Transactions and Proceedings of the Society) consists of 

 Notes of the observations and investigations of interest in Biology which 

 are recorded in the Publications of the principal Academies and Learned 

 Societies throughout the world, or in the other serial publications of this 

 and other countries. 



The Council find that this plan is looked upon with satisfaction, not only 

 by those Fellows who, from being resident in the provinces, are unable 



