OF TFE SOCIETY. 139' 



1913. 



** With the exception of five," .says the Launceston 

 Exaini7ier, (37) "the members quitted the room, with 

 "many others; and Sir Eardley AVihnot forthwith proceed- 

 ''ed to establish a new Society from among those who re- 

 "mained. . . . His Excellency then revised the rules to 

 "adopt them to the new Society, which he at once entitled 

 " ' The Horticultural and Botanical Society of V'an Diemea's 

 '' 'Land,' striking out all the irrelevant clauses."' 



The estrangement between the two Societies appears; 

 from paragraphs in the newspapers to have been associated 

 with the social and political divisions of the community. 

 Paragraphs commenting on the merits of the Societies, 

 worded in the vigorous language then customary in the 

 colonial press, appeared in the papers of each party, and 

 doubtless hindered the healing of the breach. (38) 



In a book of rules shortly afterwards published by the 



Society, the following account is given of the proceedings 



at the after-meeting, at which our Society was formed : 



''' At a Meeting of Gentlemen assembled at Government House, 



"'on the lull of October, 1843, at the request of the Lieu- 



" tenant-Governor, Sir Eardley Eardley Wilmot, His Ex- 



'' cellency, after expressinrj an opinion that the formation of 



" a Botanical and Horticidtiiral Societj/, having in view 



" likewise the development of the nattmd resources of the 



^^ Island of Van Diemtns Land, ivould be attended with 



" great advantage to the commtinity generally, was pleased to 



" state, that if such a Society were formed upon a plan 



''''then proposetC by His Excellency, a large 2'Ortion of the 



" Garden in the Government Domain shoidd be jjlaced at the 



" entire disposal of the Members : and farther, that he, the 



" Lieutenant-Goveymor, U'ould recommend to the Government, 



^^that a7i Anmial Grant of Four Hundred Poiinds should 



''''be made to the Institution, for the purpose of paying its 



" Officers and promoting its objects generally. His Excellency 



''^loas then requested to take the Chair, and the following 



*' Resolutions were moved and carried : — 



"1st. — That a Society be formed, to be called 'The 



" ' Botanical and Horticultueal Society of Van Die- 



" ' men's Land.' 



" 2nd. — That the leading objects of the Society shall be to 

 "develope the physical character of the Island, and illustrate 

 "its natural history and productions. 



(37) The report of the meetiiiff published in the Launceston Ex- 

 ami m r oi 21st October, 1S43, is printed in full in the Appendix (p. 163). 



(38) The organ of one party published a satirical account of a meet- 

 ing of the "Hypothetic Geoponical .-Society" {Courier, iSrcl August,. 

 1844) ; the appointment of a new superintendent of the Gardens prO' 

 voked the Adeerti-ser (16th May, 1845) to a leading article on "that very 

 "extraordinary scientific scheme, the Royal Horticultural Society" ; while 

 Murray's Review, the least restrained of the papers of the day, 

 attacked the Tasmanian Society in an article headed "The Mud-Fog: 

 Society" (20th October, 1843). 



