Report. 3 



by subscription, of handbooks on the various branches of Natural 

 History of the County ; the first of which (ah-eady advanced in 

 preparation) will be the 'Flora of Wilts/ by the Rev. T. A. Preston, 

 to be followed by others of a similar character as may seem desirable. 



" Your Committee has also to report some successful explorations 

 afield by means of the crowbar and spade. These were carried on 

 at Abury last autumn, and resulted in the discovery of eighteen large 

 Sarsen stones buried beneath the turf of the meadow, sixteen of 

 which belonged to the outer circle, and two to the Northern Temple. 

 Also at Winterbourne Bassett, the five stones above ground, which 

 alone remained to mark the site of the double circle which once stood 

 there, have been re-inforced by the discovery of nine others buried 

 beneath the surface. Also on Overton Hill, in February last, the 

 stone chamber within one of the large barrows was removed from 

 agricultural exigencies, and a fine skeleton and a rude urn, now in 

 the Society's Museum, were exhumed. 



" The Library and Museum of the Society have been enriched by 

 sundry contributions from various donors. Especial mention should 

 be made of the very handsome donation of coins (several of them 

 gold), medals, tokens and seals; as well as an original miniature of 

 Charles I., a very ancient watch in wooden case, and many other 

 curiosities, given by Miss Fanny Lucas, and collected by her father, 

 the well-known Wiltshire antiquary, the late Rev. Charles Lucas, of 

 Devizes. We must also again call attention to the great liberality 

 of the 'Westbury Iron Company,' by whose kindness we have 

 received very many additional objects of Roman and Roman British 

 times. Indeed our Museum now contains a very valuable collection 

 of antiquities of that period, chiefly derived from the Westbury Iron 

 Works. 



"It only remains to thank all who have in any way helped 

 forward our labours during the past year ; and again to entreat the 

 co-operation of all who take any interest in the Antiquities or the 

 Natural History of our County.'' 



Earl Nelson, one of the vice-presidents, in moving the adoption 

 of the report, said that, fortunately, he was at the present time pay- 

 ing a visit to his son at Cole Park, and he was very pleased to find 



B 2 



