179 Sir Joshua Reynolds ; Lord Hailes 191 



held until 1829. He especially distinguished himself by the 

 series of detailed meteorological observations which he 

 carried on day by day for more than forty years. He died 

 in 1843 at the age of 83. 



The most famous name on the list of guests from the 

 United Kingdom this year was the illustrious President of 

 the Royal Academy, Sir Joshua Reynolds, then in his sixty- 

 ninth year. He had been elected a Fellow of the Royal 

 Society as far back as 1761. On the present occasion he 

 was the guest of the President (i6th December) and the 

 only stranger in the company, which numbered twelve and 

 included Henry Cavendish, Dr. Blagden, Alexander Dal- 

 rymple, John Smeaton, Dr. Simmons, Alexander Aubert and 

 William Marsden, the Treasurer. 



Of the other visitors to the Club during the year one or 

 two may be briefly mentioned. The " Mr. Fred. North " 

 who by invitation of the President dined on 4th February, 

 may have been the famous Oxford Grecian and lover of 

 Greece, who is said to have been able to write and speak with 

 ease French, Spanish, Italian, German and modern Greek 

 and to write a Pindaric ode in the language of Pindar. 

 After being in Parliament for two years he resigned his 

 seat on being appointed comptroller of customs in the Port 

 of London. In 1798 he was made Governor of Ceylon and 

 conferred signal benefits on that island. After some years 

 spent in travelling through Europe he returned to England 

 and on the death of his brother in 1817 became the fifth 

 Earl of Guilford. 



Sir David Dalrymple, better known by his judicial title 

 of Lord Hailes, of the Scottish Court of Session, dined on 

 I2th August on the invitation of his brother Alexander, 

 member of the Club. As a historian and lawyer he had 

 a wide reputation in his own day and his works are still 

 of value. He was an esteemed friend of Johnson, who, as 

 Boswell tells, on one occasion " drank a bumper to him 

 ' as a man of worth, a scholar, and a wit.' ' 



There must have been a little excitement in the Club 

 on the i8th of March when the President was able to produce 



