52 Annals of the Philosophical Club 



botanical subjects, then came to London as assistant librarian to 

 Sir Joseph Banks, was befriended by W. J. Hooker, was elected 

 F.R.S. in 1828, and in 1857 was awarded a Royal Medal. He did 

 good service to the Horticultural Society's Garden at Chiswick, 

 of which he was superintendent, and was Professor of Botany in 

 University College, London, from 1829 to 1860. The Government fre- 

 quently consulted him on questions of food cultivation, and especially 

 on the noted potato famine in Ireland. He wrote many botanical 

 papers and books, and died after a long illness on Nov. ist, 1865. 



A project, which engaged the attention of the Club for 

 some little time, was started by a memorandum from Mr. 

 Gassiot, read at the meeting on March 24th. This suggested 

 the establishment of a fund for assisting scientific men or 

 their families when in need of money. The Minutes contain 

 a copy of this memorandum, which, after stating fully the 

 purpose of the fund, recommends entrusting the administra- 

 tion of it to the President and Council of the Royal Society, 

 and investing the capital of the fund in Government securities 

 in their names, the receipts and disbursements appearing 

 in the annual financial statement of the Society. No 

 application for assistance is to be entertained unless it be 

 made by the President of the Astronomical, the Chemical, 

 the Geological, the Linnean, or the Royal Societies. If 

 granted, the accommodation must be entered on the Minutes 

 of the Council, which are open to the inspection of Fellows, 

 thus preventing misappropriation, and the expenses neces- 

 sarily incurred by ordinary charitable societies. It was 

 agreed that the Treasurers should send a circular letter to 

 each member of the Club asking for his opinion on this 

 subject. 



At the next meeting (April i8th), when sixteen members 

 were present, letters were read from eight others. The 

 general opinion seemed in favour of establishing a fund, to 

 be supplementary to, not a substitute for, the pensions 

 awarded by Government to men of science, and some of 

 the Fellows promised contributions. A Committee, includ- 

 ing Mr. Gassiot, was appointed to draw up a report. This 

 was presented on May 26th as a draft scheme, and is entered 

 in the Minutes. It suggests the name Scientific Relief 



