Neil) Zealand Institute. 629 



Memorandum regarding the New Zealand Institute, 

 BEING AN Addition to the Annual Eeport presented 

 19th July, 1893. 



The first scientific society in New Zealand was founclecl in 

 1851, the first President being Sir George Grey, K.C.B., D.C.L. 

 It was named "the New Zealand Society," and was located in 

 Welhngton. 



In 1862 a second society was established in Christchurch, 

 as the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury, the first Pre- 

 sident being Mr. Julius Haast (since Sir Julius von Haast, 

 K.C.M.G., Ph.D.). 



Much useful work was done by these societies, but they 

 met at very irregular intervals, and the funds collected were 

 inadequate for the proper publication of the papers that were 

 communicated by the members. They therefore languished 

 owing to their being merely local societies, not having the 

 sympathy of the colony. 



The Exhibition held in Dunedin in 1865 brought pro- 

 minently before the public the advantage of a more general 

 organization for the development of the resources of the 

 colony, and, soon after the establishment of a scientific de- 

 partment by the General Government, the New Zealand 

 Institute Act was passed in 1867, and its administration was 

 placed under the Director of the Geological and Natural- 

 History Survey. 



The New Zealand Institute has now been in operation for 

 twenty-five years, which is a sufiicient period in the history of 

 a new country to indicate how far the practical results ob- 

 tained by the working of one of its institutions have fulfilled 

 the anticipations of its original promoters. The object sought 

 was to foster public interest in the collection and discussion 

 of original observations respecting the resources and natural 

 history of this country. This is done to the best effect by the 

 organization of a scientific society ; but it was obvious that 

 the geographical circumstances of the colony precluded the 

 formation of any strong central society, capable of stimulating 

 and directing such investigations by frequent meetings of its 

 members, as can be done in other colonies possessing a chief 

 centre of population, where all social institutions become 

 naturally concentrated. The constitution of the New Zea- 

 land Institute was therefore intended to provide for the 

 combination of local efforts in this direction by enabling the 

 joint publication of papers read and discussed before local 

 societies. 



Experience has shown that in old countries the subscribed 

 funds are generally insufficient for the proper publication of 

 the transactions of small societies, and this drawback is still 



