The Tenth General Meeting. 3 



and Library, and, in short, the head-quarters of the Society ; — a3 

 moreover the completion of its tenth year seems to mark the first 

 epoch of its existence; — your Committee think it may be of interest 

 to state very shortly the progress of the Society since its formation 

 in 1853, together with a brief outline of its work, and the results 

 attained hitherto. It will then be seen how steadily it has advanced 

 without a single drawback to the present moment. 



"The Society was inaugurated in Devizes in October, 1853, 

 under the auspices of the then Lord Lieutenant of the county; 

 and before the close of the year, 137 members enrolled themselves 

 as belonging to its ranks. In 1854, the first Annual Meeting was 

 held at Salisbury, when the numbers announced as belonging to 

 the Society were 281. This period of its existence may well be 

 termed its infancy, during which its growth was very rapid, when 

 it was pushing its way into notice both in the north and south of 

 the county, making itself heard and seen in either division, and 

 claiming and receiving general encouragement. But since the 

 year 1854, the Society has been fairly launched in the county, to 

 stand or fall by its own merits : and your Committee confidently 

 appeals to the testimony of its members, and puts forward its 

 present flourishing condition in proof that it still enjoys the 

 approval of those who compose it. For to resume our sketch of its 

 past proceedings : in 18^5, the Annual Meeting took place at Chip- 

 penham, when a still further increase, was shown, the members 

 then numbering 355. In 1856, the Society met at Warminster. 

 In 1857, at Bradford. In 1858 it was thought advisable to have 

 no Annual Meeting, in consequence of the visit of the two great 

 Archaeological Societies within or close upon our own peculiar dis- 

 trict (the Institute at Bath, and the A.ssociation at Salisbury), but 

 in lieu thereof, an evening meeting, which was numerously 

 attended, was held in this town. In 1859 Marlborough was the 

 locality visited : in 1860 Swindon was selected for the Congress : 

 in 1861 Shaftesbury : in 1862 Malmesbury : and now in 1863 we 

 have come back again to Devizes to celebrate our jubilee at the 

 home of the Society, after vibrating backwards and forwards from 

 North to South, and from East to West ; alternating as nearly as 



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