300 A HISTORY OF 



coalesce, and half the annual subscription of members 

 of the Royal Dublin Society was to go to the new 

 agricultural body. The first Council of fifty members 

 was to be elected, half by the one society and half by 

 the other. The capital of the Royal Agricultural 

 Society and that of the Agricultural Department of 

 the Royal Dublin Society were to form the capital of 

 the new body. These provisions were dependent 

 upon Government undertaking to extend to the new 

 Royal Agricultural Association all the advantages to 

 agriculture contained in Lord Sandon's letter of the 

 9th of February 1876, and the agreement of the 

 Government with the Royal Dublin Society of the 

 5th of March 1877. 



The Government withheld its assent to this con- 

 dition, and after six months 7 delay proposed to hand the 

 Society 20,000 (subsequently increased to 25,000), 

 in discharge of the undertaking to provide for the 

 removal of the shows from Kildare street, and for 

 office accommodation for agriculture in Leinster 

 House. 



The Society declined to relinquish its right to 

 office accommodation for agriculture in Leinster 

 House, but agreed to accept the sum offered for the 

 removal of the shows, provided the site already 

 selected at Ballsbridge for future shows were also 

 given by the Government, rent and taxes free. 



It would be tedious to follow the correspondence 

 and negotiations which ensued. The Science and 

 Art Department desired to remove all agricultural 

 work from Leinster House ; while the Society desired 

 to maintain the continuity of its future operations in 

 agriculture with the historical associations of the 

 past. 



The scheme of amalgamation with the Royal 



