510 Appendix. 



six, unless the major part of the Fellows present shall, for that time, 

 resolve to rise sooner, or sit later." And the Statutes of 

 Ann. 1752. 1?52 reproduce exactly the Statute (IV. Sec. 1) of 1663. 

 Nevertheless, the records of the Society show that the day and hour 

 of the ordinary meeting were more than once changed in the interval, 

 as they have been since. The following shows the changes and their 

 respective dates up to the present time : 



The first Statute enacting that no meeting should be held 

 ' on certain days or in certain weeks was passed in 1831 ; 

 previously to that the Statutes simply said "upon Wednesday," or 

 " upon Thursday." But the practice of having an Autumn recess was 

 of much older date than this; moreover, the Journal Book shows 

 that from the earliest times it was customary to hold no meetings on 

 Ash Wednesday and certain other holy days, and that in particular 

 no meeting was held on the anniversary of the death of Charles I. 

 In 1661 the Journal Book omits the date, January 30, without remark, 

 although a meeting was due upon that day. On January 30, 1666, 

 the Minute appears, " This day being the Anniversary Fast-Day, there 

 was no Meeting of the Society." In 1667, the entry is, "The Society 

 met not, because of the solemne Fast." Similar entries occur in 

 subsequent years, the last being on January 30, 1834. After this date 

 the custom was omitted. 



The Admission of Strangers to the Meetings of the Society. 



In the Statutes of 1752, any of his Majesty's subjects 



nn. 17 . having tn e title and place of a Baron, or having any 



higher title or place, are permitted to be present at the Meetings of 



the Society, "with the allowance of the President;" other persons 



may attend " upon leave obtained of the President and Fellows present." 



* Careful search has failed to show when this change was made, but it was 

 probably about this time. 



