+ Third General Meeting. 
deal to interest them even in connection with the town of Chip- 
penham. And with regard to the neighbourhood, those who will 
accompany the learned Recorder of Devizes this evening to the 
“ Abbeys of Lacock and Stanley, and the Priory of Lockswell,” 
will find that there are undoubtedly objects of great interest to be 
met with here as elsewhere, and, notwithstanding that we have 
not at Chippenham an Old Sarum, a Stonehenge, an ancient Castle, 
nor a Cathedral, as at those towns in which we have formerly met, 
yet we shall find that there are many objects of interest in this 
neighbourhood, as well as in those. We shall have the opportunity 
also, of opening one or two remarkable barrows ;—one of them 
“ Hubba’s Lowe,’’ which marks the site of a very remarkable 
battle between the Saxons and the Danes, as the result of which 
Alfred took possession of the British throne. There are other 
interesting places to be visited, besides several churches; Lord 
Methuen has kindly opened Corsham Court to our inspection, and 
another noble lord, our Patron, has had the kindness and generosity 
to invite the members and subscribers to visit his house and grounds, 
(cheers), where they will have the opportunity of seeing the per- 
fection to which high art can attain, under the patronage of the 
most consummate taste. Iam sure those who are assembled here, 
and look around this room, who listen to the papers that will be 
read, and follow our excursions, will not be disappointed. The 
difficulty will be to find time to inspect the objects of interest that 
will be presented. With these remarks I beg to introduce Mr. 
Lukis, who will read the report of the Society for the last twelve 
months, and thereby give you some idea of our position and progress. 
REPORT. 
“The Committee of the Wiltshire Archeological and Natural 
History Society, in presenting their annual Report, deem that it 
will be sufficient on the present occasion, to place before the meeting 
a brief statement of the position of the Society, at the close of the 
second year of its existence. 
It has made a most satisfactory progress since its formation in 
the year 1853. At the period of the Inaugural Meeting in the 
