WILLIAM SIEMEXS, l-.R.S. 153 



Engineers, tin; Iron and Steel Institute, and possibly other societies 

 which hold their ordinary meetings on different days of the week, 

 and some of them at considerable intervals of time ; it would not, 

 therefore, be necessary to provide more than one, or perhaps two, 

 general meeting rooms, and one library, but each society would 

 require separate office accommodation and council chambers, the 

 whole being so arranged as to be able to be thrown open for the 

 holding of conversaziones. 



The common interests of the societies might be placed under the 

 supervision of a joint House and Library Committee, presided over 

 by the President of the Institution of Civil Engineers, and com- 

 prising amongst its members one or two members of councils and 

 the secretaries of the different societies. 



The Government would probably not be unwilling to further the 

 realisation of an object of such great usefulness by granting a site 

 in a central portion of the metropolis. Each society might be 

 called upon to furnish a portion of the capital required, either out 

 of its accumulated funds, or by voluntary contributions of its 

 members, and the remainder could probably be raised upon 

 debentures, and thus become chargeable upon the ordinary sub- 

 scriptions of future years. 



The details of such a scheme would, of course, require most 

 careful consideration ; but I believe that the present moment 

 would be favourable for its realisation if you, as well as the other 

 scientific bodies concerned, consider the matter worthy your 

 attention. 



The great variety and importance of subjects of interest to our 

 Institution are my apology for having detained you longer than 

 I intended to do in reading this address. 



