13 



SECT. 11. This act shall take effect from and after its adoption 

 by the Essex Historical Society and the Essex County Natural His- 

 tory Society, at meetings of the two societies held for that purpose; 

 and all acts inconsistent with this act shall, after the adoption here- 

 of, be considered as repealed. 



Approved by the Governor, Feb. 11, 1848. 



A committee to prepare a Constitution and By-Laws was appointed, 

 and their report was accepted at a meeting held on the 8th of March. 



Thus organized, the Institute consists of three departments : the 

 HISTORICAL, having for its object the collection and preservation of 

 whatever relates to the geography, antiquities, eivil and ecclesiasti- 

 cal history of Essex County, in Massachusetts. The NATURAL HIS- 

 TORY, for the formation of a Cabinet of natural productions in gen- 

 eral, and more particularly of those of the County, and for a Library 

 of standard works on the natural sciences. The HORTICULTURAL, 

 for promoting a taste for the cultivation of choice fruits and flowers, 

 and also for collecting works on horticulture and agriculture in con- 

 nection with the general Library. 



LIBRARY. 



The Library contains about 22,000 volumes, comprising numerous 

 flies of newspapers, public documents, local histories, &c. ; also the 

 transactions or collections of various historical, agricultural, scien- 

 tific and other societies ; besides many valuable works illustrative of 

 the natural sciences ; about 50,000 pamphlets, (exclusive of dupli- 

 cates,) political, historical, educational, &c., unbound, arranged ac- 

 cording to subjects. 



These have principally been obtained by donations or exchanges. 

 Among the donors may be mentioned our late lamented President, 

 Hon. D, A. White, who has at different times, during his life and at 

 his decease, given or bequeathed some 8,000 volumes comprising a 

 good series of the Old English Classics, also of the Latin and Greek, 

 and several volumes p:iuted during the 15th and 16th centuries, 

 the late Mrs. Eliza L. Eogers, who bequeathed a copy of Audubon's 

 Birds of America ; and the late Ichabod Tucker and Thomas Cole, 

 besides many friends of the Institute whose names it would be in- 

 vidious to mention. Over two thousand books and pamphlets were 

 added to the library during the past year by donation and exchange. 



MUSEUM. 



The several departments of the Institute are well represented, 

 and in a number of the classes of the Animal Kingdom the collec- 

 tions are inferior to but one or two others in the Country ; though 

 the crowded state of the rooms devoted to the Museum will not al- 

 low of their being so advantageously arranged as is desirable. The 



