44 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1817. 



[JUXE. 



dill not exceed two hours in dura- 

 tion ; that their meetings were only 

 held dining one half of each term, 

 Avhen they were haidly ever at- 

 tended by one half of the resident 

 members ; consequently each in- 

 dividual, on an average, did not 

 bestow on the society more than 

 ten hoiu's in the year, and could 

 not possibly give more than forty; 

 tliat, so far from interfering with 

 tlie studies of the place, their list 

 of members exhibits the names of 

 three university scholais, seven 

 Chancellor's medallists, twelve 

 Browne's medallists, and several 

 who had attained the highest ma- 

 thematical honours. Tlicy pro- 

 fess themselves ready to exclude 

 from their debates, if they can be 

 tolerated on no other terms, poli- 

 tical, as they always have done 

 theological subjects J and to submit 

 to any regulation which may not 

 be utterly incompatible with their 

 wish to practise themselves in 

 speaking — a study which they hum- 

 bly conceive not to be utterly 

 useless." 



It w?is farther submitted to the 

 Vice-Chancellor, " that the exist- 

 ence of a large speaking society, 

 forming a Aveekly point of re- 

 union to its members, had ma- 

 terially tended to diminish the 

 attendance on clubs and meetings, 

 whose conduct was likely to be less 

 orderly, as their objects were less 

 intellectual than those of the 

 Union." 



They most earnestly requested, 

 that their society might not be put 

 down precisely at this period, 

 when the luiiveisal suppression of 

 societies bearing accidentally the 

 same name, might lead those im- 

 acquainted with the University to 

 suppose that their club l\as been 



put down from political motives, 

 and that it has been guilty of sedi- 

 tious meetings or treasonable lan- 

 guage. 



'J'he Vice-Chancellor replied — 

 " Tliat he did not think it neces- 

 s;u'y, or perhaps proper, to rctiun 

 any answer to this statement." 



JUNE. 



From KanitschafJca, Matj2'}, O.S. 

 — As in the whole east and north- 

 east part of Siberia, it has hap- 

 pened also in Kamtschatka, that 

 in the course of last winter an in- 

 credible number of bears have left 

 the woods, frequently entered the 

 houses of the Kamtschadales, in 

 many places have attacked and 

 devoured the inhabitants ; nay, 

 tiaces iiave been found of tlieir 

 having killed and devoured each 

 other. At tlie end of the winter 

 many bears were found who had 

 l>erished with hunger. In several 

 settlements they have killed from 

 y to 300 bears. The oldest Kamts- 

 chadales do not remember ever to 

 have seen the bears so savage and 

 bloodthirsty. The cause of this 

 savageness and of their hunger is, 

 tliat for these two years past there 

 has been an entire want of fish in 

 the Kamtschatka sea ; and fish, as 

 is well known, are the chief food 

 of the bears, Avhich, being usually 

 so abundant in those waters, they 

 easily contrive to catch. 



3. About five o'clock in the af- 

 ternoon, a dreadful occurrence 

 took place in Portman-square. 

 The Ladv of Dr. Charles Dalston 

 Nevinson, after taking her usual 

 walk in the enclosure of the square, 

 had just closed the gate, and was 

 crossing the footway upon her 



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