22 



Your Committee have pleasure in reporting to you, that on 

 one head of the expenditure, to which the Auditors of 1S37 

 directed your attention, viz. Salaries and Wages, there ap- 

 pears a saving, as compared with (he previous year, amount- 

 ing to £461. Your Auditors cannot, however, allow you to 

 depart with the impression that there has been a bond fide 

 saving in Salaries and Wages to the full amount stated above, 

 the Council having in the course of the year, entered into a 

 contract for the maintenance of the Gardening Department, 

 the Salaries and Wages of the Gardeners forming part of that 

 contract, will therefore be included under the head of "Garden 

 Expenses." In Works, Materials, and Repairs, there has been 

 a considerable reduction, and there have been no buildings 

 undertaken during the past year; these circumstances fully 

 account for the surplus of Receipts over the Expenditure, and 

 that surplus wouLd have been still greater, but that a large 

 sum has been expended during the year for a very desirable 

 and legitimate object, viz. the Purchase of Animals. 



While your Auditors have considered it their duty to draw 

 your attention to the larger items of the Expenditure (refer- 

 ring you to the abstract for the minor) they cannot close their 

 remarks on this head without stating to you, that throughout 

 the minute investigation which they have made of the accounts 

 for the last year, the Council have shown the strongest 

 disposition to reduce the Expenditure generally, while at the 

 same time, they do not appear to have omitted any opportu- 

 nity of increasing the Society's valuable Collection. 



ASSETS. 



There has been £1210 sterling added to the Investment 

 Fund, making the funded capital of the Society amount, on 

 the 31st day of December 1838, to £11,291 125. Id., exclu- 

 sive of £200 Exchequer Bills. 



LIABILITIES. 



With respect to the liabilities, there appears an increase 

 over the preceding year, the total, amounting to £l 774 16s. 4r/.; 

 and vour Auditors consider that it would be desirable to cause 



