52 SECOND ANNUAL MEETING, 
“The eommittee have made an arrangement with the 
Taunton Literary Institution, by which they obtain the 
use of their large room, the loan of their museum and a 
portion of their library, upon payment of half their annual 
rent. They have also united with them in securing the 
services of a curator upon similar terms. "These arrange- 
ments cost the society £50 a year. 
“ They have received many gifts and deposits of books, 
fossils, coins, and other objects of antiquity and natural 
history, which, together with the collection of the Taunton 
Literary Institution, form the nucleus of a museum in that 
town. Members have been invited to make deposits on 
loan, that in case this society should not continue to flourish 
as we have every reason to expect it will, they may have 
the power of withdrawing them, and placing them where 
they are more likely to be of use. A list ofall gifts and 
deposits will be added to the projeeted publication. 
“The committee have not thought themselves justified 
in laying out much money in the purchase of objects for 
the museum or library. "They have, however, procured a few 
books and a collection of sulphur casts from ancient seals. 
They have given a subscription in aid of the researches of 
the British Natural History Society ; in return for which 
they have received a collection of fossils from the tertiary 
beds of the Hampshire coast, and are to receive others 
from the mountain limestone of the North of England and 
Ireland, and they have also made a grant of £5 to aid in 
uncovering some remains of a Roman villa in the parish of 
East Coker. In conclusion, the committee venture to con- 
gratulate the members on the establishment and fair 
prospects of this society. It has been in existence only 18 
months, and consists of more than 300 members. It has 
been favorably received at three of the principal towns of 
the county. They believe that a spirit of enquiry has 
