OF THE SOCIETY. 141 



1913. 



" It ivaa then resolved, — 



u9th._'rhat the following Fellows shall constitute the 

 '' Council until the first Annual Meeting of the Society, viz.— 



" Sir J. L. Pedder, Mr. Champ, 



"Mr. BicHENO, Major Cotton, 



''Kev. John Lillie, Mr. Botes, 



*'Capt. SWANSTON, FrASER, 



''Mr. Hone, J- Burnett, senior, 



" Allport, Btjtlee. 



c^xOth. — That Captain Swi.nston be the Treasurer of the 

 " Society. 



"11th.— That Mr. Champ be Secretary until the First 

 " Annual Meeting. 



''The President then named the following Members of the 

 " Council to act as Vice-Presidents iintil tfie Jirst Annual 

 " Meetim/, viz.— 



" Sir J. L. Pedder, Rev. John Lii.lie, 



" Mr. Bicheno, Caj-t. Swanston." 



Rules for the Society were adopted at a meeting held at 

 Government House on 28th October. These contain many 

 of the provisions of our present rules. But it is of interest 

 to notice that the Council was required to "meet regularly 

 "once in every week,"' and there was provision also far 

 special meetiiigs. The rules provided (contrary to the 

 practice of many learned societies then and since) that 

 ladies might be admitted as Fellows, with the same privi- 

 leges as gentlemen, except that if they nominated "any 

 •' Geiitlenian, being a Fellow of the Society, to be their 

 "proxy," such proxy "shall not be changed within the 

 "year."' The Secretary, it was provided, "shall possess a 

 "scientific knowledge of the leading branches of Natural 

 "History, particularly of Botany and Geology"; and the 

 rules contemplated the formation of a museum and library. 



A few days afterwards, on 3rd November, Sir John 

 Franklin embarked from Hobart, "amidst a burst of gen- 

 "erous and enthusiastic feeling," he remarks in his Narra- 

 tive, " whiih. much as I had confided in the attachment 

 "of the people of Van Diemen's Land, could not but sur- 

 "prise as well as deeply affect me." Accompanied by Bishop 

 Nixon, the party "first visited a settlement of respectable 

 "free agriculturists, on the banks of the Huon River. Here, 

 "located upon land belonging to my wife, upon terms which 

 "were to enable therm to become shortly the independent 

 "possessors of it, they had hewed themselves an opening in 

 "the dense forests which clothe the banks of that river, and 

 "had laid its soil open to the sun." Sailing for Launceston, 

 Franklin landed at Swan Island, and laid the first stone of 



