1855 Duke of Argyll '; Lt.- Co I. Henry James .371 



to the harmony and comfort of their social meetings." It 

 should be added that the excellent Treasurer lived for 

 nearly two years longer in his quarters at Gray's Inn, but 

 was latterly unable to leave them owing to the infirmities 

 of age. He died on 26th May 1857 at tne a g e f eighty- 

 three. 1 



In succession to the Treasurership Dr. John Percy was 

 now appointed. 



The guests in the first half of this year included the 8th 

 Duke of Argyll, who in addition to his political activities 

 manifested much interest in scientific problems, and in later 

 years contributed to their discussion by controversial papers 

 and more especially by his " Reign of Law." Another 

 visitor was Lieut. -Colonel Henry James, Director-General 

 of the Ordnance Survey, who will be remembered for his 

 introduction of photo-zincography into the reproduction of 

 the Ordnance maps. Lord Hatherton dined on April iQth 

 as the President's guest. He had been an active politician 

 in his day and after the passing of the Reform Bill of 1832 

 he was appointed Chief Secretary for Ireland. But he had 

 now retired from active public life. 



Up to the period at which this narrative of the Annals 

 of the Royal Society Club has arrived both the Minute- 

 books of the annual General Meetings and the weekly 

 dinner-registers have been preserved in continuous sequence, 

 without any break from 1748. But at this point, while 

 the Anniversary Minute-books remain, with their story 

 complete up to the present time, the weekly registers suddenly 

 fail. From the middle of the year 1855 to the 2Oth November 

 1879 no record of the weekly meetings is now to be found 

 among the papers belonging to the Club. 



This record of an interval of twenty-four years would 

 fill several such volumes as were used for reporting the 

 weekly meetings, but no trace of these can now be discovered. 

 They must certainly have disappeared before the year 

 1892, for in the Minutes of the Anniversary meeting of 

 that year a statement occurs in the handwriting of the 



1 Proceedings of Linnean Society, 1857, p. xxxvii. 



