THE ROYAL DUBLIN SOCIETY 217 



CHAPTER XIV 



GENERAL HISTORY OF THE SOCIETY 

 (1781-1815) 



Having now had separately under review, in the last 

 five or six chapters, the various departments into which 

 the Society's activities had branched out, namely, the 

 drawing schools, the botanic garden, the schools of 

 agriculture and chemistry, and the library, it becomes 

 necessary to take a survey of its general work during 

 the later portion of the eighteenth and the earlier part 

 of the nineteenth centuries. As if to show how 

 widespread was the Society's influence, the period to 

 be considered opens with a communication from the 

 West India Islands. A letter, dated Barbadoes, 14th 

 July 1 7 8 1 , was received from Joshua Steele, an honor- 

 ary member, announcing that several gentlemen in 

 that island had formed themselves into a Society for 

 discovering the useful qualities of native productions, 

 animal, vegetable, and fossil. Mr. Steele had been 

 chosen president, and the Barbadoes Society offered 

 help, begging to be admitted to correspondence with 

 the Dublin Society. The request was granted, and 

 it was agreed that the president of the foreign Society 

 for the time being was to be considered an honorary 

 member. During successive years, reports were re- 

 ceived from Mr. Steele, which contained acounts of 

 its proceedings, and described the different natural 

 productions of the island. 



