Rules for Electing Fellows Discussed 65 



was concerned with the direct Atlantic cable of 1874, besides 

 the long-distance land cable from Prussia to Teheran. Also he 

 was a strong supporter of the transmission of power by electricity. 

 He also made experiments on electric lighting, and its effect on the 

 growth of plants, with other things too numerous to mention. He 

 received honorary degrees from Oxford, Dublin, and Glasgow ; 

 sundry foreign orders ; was President of the British Association, 

 1882, and was knighted in 1883, dying on Nov. i8th of that year, " a 

 born inventor, a shrewd man of business, who made a large fortune 

 and was a generous giver." 



1871. On Nov. 23rd, the vacancy caused by the death 

 of Sir R. I. Murchison was filled by replacing General 

 Strachey on the list, who had now returned from India. 



1872. At the Anniversary Meeting on April 22nd, 

 Professor Flower was elected Treasurer in the place of 

 Dr. Sclater. 



On Dec. igth (since there was no quoium at the meeting 

 on Nov. 2ist), the vacancy made by the death of Colonel 

 Sykes was filled by the election of Professor Allman. 



PROFESSOR GEORGE JAMES ALLMAN was born in Cork in 1812, and 

 graduated as B.A. in 1839 and as M.D. in 1847 at Trinity College, 

 Dublin, studying at first for the Bar, but ultimately leaving it and 

 medical practice for Natural Science, when he devoted himself 

 to marine zoology, more especially the hydrozoa and polyzoa. 

 Elected Professor of Botany in 1844 at Dublin, he obtained the 

 Professorship of Natural History at Edinburgh in 1854, and became 

 F.R.S. in the same year. He described the collections of medusae 

 and other hydrozoa made on the Challenger expedition, and continued 

 working energetically at science after retiring from the Professorship 

 in 1870. He was President of the British Association, 1879, and after 

 settling at Parkstone, Dorset, died there on November 24th, 1898. 



1873. On March 27th, General Strachey asked the Club 

 to consider the following suggested changes in the rules for 

 the election of Fellows into the Royal Society : (i) that 

 Persons of Royal birth, Peers, and Privy Councillors should 

 be elected under the same rules as ordinary Fellows ; (2) that 

 the election should be held on a single day that for the 

 election of ordinary Fellows ; (3) that, like these, they 

 should be proposed by the Council, instead of by any Fellow, 

 as at present ; (4) that in future their qualification shall be 

 "" ascertained special power and disposition to forward the 



p.c. E 



