Mr. Piesse said he would accept the suggestion made b}- Dr. 

 Butler, and would add a clause to his amendment, providing for 

 a month's notice being given of any proposed affiliation. 



The Chairman said that if he stood alone he would have to 

 oppose the motion. A revision of the Rules was now being 

 made, and the proposition would have to be rererred to the 

 Committee who had the work in hand, so that it would have to 

 come up again for consideration when the general revision was 

 discussed. T!ie scope of the motion where it mentioned the 

 affiliation of "any" societ}' was altogether too wide. 



The motion was put and lost. Including proxies, the aj^es 

 numbered i6 and the noes 27 votes. 



Mr. Piesse said he would withdraw the new Rule 42b, but 

 would ask the meeting to vote on the amendment to paragraph 

 44. The object of the amendment w^as to allow questions to be 

 asked or subjects to be discussed of which notice had not been 

 given. At a previous meeting of the Society a question had 

 been asked, but it was ruled out of order, and he wanted to 

 safeguard the procedure in the future. 



]\Ir. L. Giblin seconded the motion. He held that the pre- 

 sent condition of affairs was absurd, and was never contem- 

 plated by the framers of any rules. 



Mr. R. M. Johnston said that there would be great danger 

 in passing the motion. If it was passed it was possible 

 for all sorts of matters to be introduced which were altogether 

 foreign to the proceedings of the Society. Recently politics had 

 been touched upon in their ranks, and some of them were not 

 of the best form. It would be a bad thing if they were to split 

 up the Society into interests, and lead to the introduction of 

 parties. The object of the Society was to encourage original 

 work, and the publication of papers written by Members. He 

 considered that the passing of the miOtion would cause rivalries 

 to spring up, and would defeat the objects of the organisation. 



The Chairman said he would ask the mover of the motion 

 if he wished to convert the Society into an ordinary debating 

 society? That would be the result of the motion, for all sorts 

 of subjects would be sprung upon them for discussion without 

 notice. It appeared to him that the object aimed at could be 

 sufficiently attained under the present Rules. He sympathised 

 with the object of the motion, but would have to vote against it 

 in its present form. 



The motion v^'as lost. Including proxies, the ayes numbered 

 10 and the noes 31 votes. 



This concluded the business of the Special Meeting. 



The Monthly General Meeting of the Society was then held. 

 Mr. T. Stephens, M.A., F.G.S., in the chair. 



THE PETTERD COLLECTION. 



A communication was received from the Council enclosing 

 a letter from the Trustees of the Tasmanian Museum offering 



