158 Record of the Royal Society. 



HISTORY OF THE GOVERNMENT GRANT FOR 

 SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS. 



I. " GOVERNMENT GRANT " OF 1000 PER ANNUM. 



For the origin of the annual Parliamentary Grant for "scientific 

 investigations," it is necessary to go back to the year 1849. On 

 November 16 of that year, a letter addressed confidentially by Lord 

 John Russell to th^ late Earl of Rosse was read to the Council, 

 together with the draft of Lord Rosse's reply, and on December 20 

 a Committee, consisting of the Lord Chief Baron, Professor Owen, 

 Sir Roderick Murcbison, Dr. Miller, and the officers, was appointed 

 " to consider and report to the Council respecting the application of 

 the proposed Grant by Her Majesty's Government for the promotion 

 of scientific inquiries." This Committee presented their Report to 

 the Council on March 7, 1850, recommending that 



" First, and chiefly, the Grant be awarded in aid of private 

 individual scientific investigation. 



" Secondly, in aid of the calculation and scientific reduction of 

 masses of accumulated observations. 



" Thirdly, in aid of astronomical, meteorological, and other obser- 

 vations, which may be assisted by the purchase and employment 

 of new instruments. 



" Fourthly, and subordinately to the purposes above named, in aid 

 of such other scientific objects as may, from time to time, 

 appear to be of sufficient interest, although not coming under 

 any of the foregoing heads." 



The Report, from which the foregoing is quoted, was adopted and a 

 "*' Committee of Recommendations " appointed. 



The sum granted by the Government and administered by that 

 Committee was 1000. On January 6, 1851, Lord John Russell 

 wrote to the President informing him that he should ' set apart one 

 thousand pounds, from the fund for Special Service, to be applied by 

 the Council of the Royal Society in the same manner as the Grant 

 made for scientific pui'poses last year." The same sum was granted 

 in 1852, 1853, and .1854, bat, upon the President applying in 1855, 

 "for the annual Grant of 1000," he was informed by a letter from 

 H.M. Treasury that these Grants were special, and that the limited 

 amount of the fund from which they had been made would not admit 

 of "an annual Grant to the Royal Society," but it was suggested 



