Annual Report of the Council. 255 



character of the project, to submit It for discussion at a 

 General Meeting, the President offered to defray the whole 

 cost of the gathering; whereupon, at a meeting of the Council, 

 it was resolved unanimously " that the Council thank the 

 President for his generous offer to defray the entire cost of 

 the conversazione, and gratefully accept it, with the con- 

 dition that he will permit all members of the Council who 

 may desire to do so, to be associated with him in bearing 

 the expense, and that the invitations be sent out in the 

 name of the President and Council." The conversazione, 

 therefore, has involved no charge on the funds of the Society. 

 It was held on the evening of April 4th, 1889, and about two 

 hundred ladies and gentlemen responded to the invitations 

 issued. A copy of the programme, suitable for binding with 

 the Memoirs and Proceedings, has been sent to each member. 

 To the list of exhibits described therein should be added 

 a special collection of living plants, for which the Council 

 were indebted to Mr. William Brockbank, F.L.S., F.G.S., 

 including SyniJiiris renifonniSy a North American plant 

 introduced by the exhibitor to Kew in 1885, and described 

 in the Bot. Mag., Tab. 6860, 1886; examples of the Ajax 

 section of daffodils and various narcissi collected wild in 

 Portugal ;' and examples of dwarf Japanese maples with 

 many varieties of foliage grafted into each plant. 



The Secretaries, on behalf of the Council, have duly 

 acknowledged the important assistance received from 

 various members and friends of the Society on the occasion. 



The Council consider it desirable to continue the system 

 of electing Associates of the Sections, and the usual reso- 

 lution for the approval of the members will be submitted 

 at the Annual General Meeting. The Natural History 

 Section, in consideration of the large number of Associates 

 connected with it, has resolved to increase its annual 

 contribution from £2. 2s. to ^,^5. 5 s. 



The number of ordinar}' members on the roll on March 



