105 



Report of Council, June 26th, 1889. 



The Council has met nine times during the past year^ and the 

 meetings have been well attended. 



The members of the Council have been informed through the 

 periodical reports of the Director (Mr. Bourne) and the Naturalist 

 (Mr. Cunningham), of the condition of the Laboratory and the pro- 

 gress of the woi'k at Plymouth, and the business transacted by them 

 has had reference to the course of work to be pursued at the Labora- 

 tory and the provisions necessary for such work. 



The Council are able to report a satisfactory year's work since the 

 opening of the Laboratory at the end of June, 1888. 



The various arrangements in the tank-room and laboratories have 

 stood the test of a year's work, and prove to be well adapted for their 

 purposes. Some slight defects have come to light and some unavoid- 

 able mishaps have occurred, but the former have been remediable 

 and the number of the latter has been fewer than might have been 

 expected. There has been some trouble from the bursting of the 

 feed pipes and delivery pipes of the pumps, but these have been 

 put right. 



The Council are glad to report that the system of circulation 

 adopted by them for the aquarium fulfils all their expectations. At 

 first it was feared that the density of the water in Plymouth Sound, 

 which is some degrees below that of the open sea, would interfere 

 seriously with hatching operations. But in the last six months the 

 density has been maintained without trouble at the normal point, 

 and spring- water has to be added every week to make up for evapo- 

 ration. The water in cii'culation is perfectly aerated, and marine 

 animals thrive well in it. The tank-room has been thrown open to 

 the public free of charge, every Wednesday afternoon, and the 

 Director reports that it is always crowded on these occasions. 



The staff of servants in the employ of the Association consists of 

 an engineer and caretaker (C. Marshall, wages thirty shillings per 

 week), whose wife receives £18 per annum for cleaning and dusting 

 the building ; a laboratory servant (J. Walker, fifteen shillings per 

 week), whose duties are confined to attendance in the Laboratory ; 

 a gardener (W. Hortop, nine shillings per week, remainder of wages 

 paid by the Director) ; a fisherman (W. Roach, thirty shillings per 

 week), and a fisherman's boy (ten shillings per week). 



