December 31. 



But the liabilities were diminished to the amount of 

 £379 8*. Sd. ; and the value of the new Monkey-house, 

 which, though not strictly speaking an available asset, is 

 unquestionably a very important and necessary addition to 

 the accommodation required at the Gardens, may be fairly 

 balanced against the item of land, which now disappears for 

 the first time from the assets of the Society ; the Council, 

 as already communicated to the Society at the General 

 Meeting in August, having effected the sale of the property 

 in question for the sum of £1031 2s. Qd. 



The " Investment Fund," which has always constituted 

 the principal and only permanent item of the Society's 

 available assets, was increased during the past year to the 

 extent of £800 ; a farther sum of £568 7*. 5d. has since 

 been added to it, making the funded capital of the Society 

 at the present moment £12,660, which is the actual amount 

 of all the sums hitherto received on account of hfe compo- 

 sitions ; and the Council have therefore the satisfaction of 

 stating, that they have now redeemed the pledge which their 

 predecessors gave at the Anniversary Meeting of 1837, in 

 accordance with a recommendation of the Committee of Au- 

 ditors of that year, to consider the total amount of these 

 compositions as the minimum of the " Investment Fund." 

 This minimum has now been reached for the first time ; and 

 if the pressing necessity for the erection of permanent and 

 substantial buildings at the Gardens forbids the Council to 

 contemplate the probability of any material increase in the 

 amount of this Fund, for some time to come, they will at 



