OF THE SOCIETY. 129 



1913. 



"basing passions, and to add the dignity of a cultivated 

 "and well-informed mind to the simplicity of rural occu- 

 "pation and sequestered life-" 



The first number of the Tas?fia?itan Journal was pub- 

 lished on 20th August, 1841, price 2 6. Sir John Franklin 

 sent copies to the Secretary of State for the Colonies, with 

 a despatch (19) in wdiich he expressed his own interest in 

 the Society, and explained the reasons which had led him 

 to allow the Journal to be printed at the Government 

 Printing Office : (20) 



"I have the honour to transmit to Your Lordship two 

 "copies of the 'Tasmanian Journal of Natural Science, 

 " 'etc.', a periodical work commenced by a Society in whos^ 

 ^'labours I take great interest from a conviction that such 

 "discussions as take place at the meetings of this body, 

 "however imperfect and elementary may be the informa- 

 "tiou obtained, tend not only to the development of the 

 "resources of a country like this, but to the general im- 

 "'provement and enlargement of the public mind. 



"Such a Society would, I conceive, be beneficial to the 

 ^'community, even if the only result of their deliberations 

 "were to withdraw the mind for a time from the engross- 

 "ing calculations of traffic, and the contemplation of mere- 

 "ly local interests, Avhich make so large a demand upon 

 "the time and attention of the Colonists. 



"But when the wide field of research is considered, which 

 "this and the neighboiiring Colonies present, both with 

 ''reference to Physical questions of universal interest, and 

 "also— taking a more circumscribed view of the subject— 

 "to the means which may daily be discovered of adding to 

 ''the natural richness of the Territory, or of extracting 

 *'from it wealth as yet undiscovered ; and when it is re- 

 "membered with what anxiety the Philosophers of Europe 

 "have laboured, often unsuccessfully, to obtain accurate 

 "information conce'rning the Natural History of these 

 "Regions, the advantages to be derived from the publica- 

 'tion of such a Journal appear in a still stronger light. 



"With these impressions I have given to the Societv 

 "in question every encouragement in my power, and upon 

 "its being represented to me by the Members that their en- 

 "deavours to get the Journal printed at any of the Private 



(19) No. 129, 27th August, 1841. 



(20) This ciroumstance aroused much criticism in the local news- 

 papers. The Government Printing Office had been established in 1839, 

 under the superintendence of Mr. James Barnard (an original member 

 of the Royal Society, and, except for a few years, a member of the 

 Council from 1847 to his death in 1897), and the Governor had stated 

 that the office was for the exclusive use of the Government, and that 

 no private printing would be done. 



