MEETING. 



Mr. A. McArtiiur, M.P. — I have great pleasure in moving "That the 

 Eeport be received, and the thanks of the Members and Associates be 

 presented to the council, honorary officers, and auditors for their efficient 

 conduct of the business of the Victoria Institute during the year." I am 

 sure I shall best consult the wishes of those present and the interests of 

 the Institute by not occupying more than a minute or two of your time. I 

 may, however, be permitted to say that I think the Report which has been 

 presented this evening is, in every respect, highly satisfactory. The 

 concluding portion of it refers to the Address issued at the foundation of the 

 Institute, and, with regard to that subject, I may say that I recollect 

 perfectly Avell the occasion on which our late lamented friend Mr. Eeddie, 

 who may be called the originator of the Society, the Rev. Walter 

 Mitchell, myself, and a few others, called upon the Earl of Shaftesbury, 

 and requested him to accept the position of President of the Institute. 

 Lord Shaftesbury very willingly complied, but that was a day of only 

 small things. "We had then only 150 members, and I recollect attending 

 a meeting at which I ventured to express the hope that" we might 

 ultimately enrol within our body at least 1,000 members. That state- 

 ment was, at the time, regarded as a flight of imagination which was 

 not likely to be realised by the course of events ; but I am happy to say 

 that at the present moment, as I find from the Report now presented, we 

 have, including our honorary correspondents, 1,125 members of the "Victoria 

 Institute. (Cheers.) I am glad also to find that the number is steadily 

 growing, notwithstanding the great depression of trade that has so long 

 existed, and the number of members we have lost by death. There is, 

 however, one item in the Report which can hardly be called quite 

 satisfactory. I allude to the fact that the Treasurer's statement shows a 

 balance against the Society of ,£3. 12s. 9d. It is intimated, hoM'ever, that if 

 the subscribers and honorary members would pay their subscriptions earlier 

 in the year, the Institute would thereby effect a considerable saving. "When 

 we reflect on the great work we have been doing, and on the position the 

 Institute now occupies, when we see how it is valued and esteemed, not 

 only in this country, but in India, the Australian colonies, Canada, and the 

 United States of America,* and indeed in every other part of the world in 

 which the English language is spoken, or where the papers are translated 

 into foreign tongues, we must recognise the fact that the Institute has been 

 doing a large amount of good, and is consequently pre-eminently worthy of 

 our support. I trust its members will endeavour to extend its influence by 

 bringing in as many new members as possible. The resolution I have the 

 honour to propose tenders our thanks to the council, honorary officers, and 

 auditors for their efficient conduct of the business of the Institute during 



* "Where the Institute's members have founded an "offshoot." — The 

 American Institute of Christian Philosophy, 



