TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 173 
3. That there are at present upwards of one hundred and twenty learned societies 
in the United Kingdom, having in the aggregate upwards of 60,000 members, 
-and deduction made for members belonging to more than one society, upwards 
of 45,000 persons engaged or directly concerned in the promotion of science, with 
a collective income of upwards of £130,000. 4. That it seems desirable to render 
the published Transactions of such societies as complete as possible by the addition 
of a summary of the discussions which arise out of the reading of scientific com- 
munications and papers. 5. That considerable advantage and economy would 
result by locating several societies in the same building, the members having 
mutuality of privileges, especially as regards the use of large rooms for meetings 
and the common use of the libraries. 6, That the councils of all the learned 
societies should annually meet together to consider the state of science, and the 
relation of each to education and legislation. 7. That the relation of the State to 
the learned societies, money grants or house accomodation being made to some 
while others are entirely ignored, does not appear to proceed on any well-esta- 
blished principle 8. That the institution of a medal annually granted to dis- 
tinguished merit, appears, from the experience of some societies, well calculated to 
afford stimulus to the pursuit of science. 9. And that a united meeting of the 
members of all learned societies should be held for the presentation of such medals, 
and for the greater encouragement to science, in the “ Royal Albert Hall of Arts 
and Science,” now in the course of construction, as a memorial to that munificent 
patron of science, who with so much wisdom and dignity presided over one of the 
meetings of the British Association. [See Appendix, p. 
On the Present State of the Question of International Coinage. 
By Prof. Lroye Levi, /.S.A., FSS. 
Having shown the practical character of the question at issue, and the im- 
portance attached to it by the juries of international exhibitions, the statistical 
congresses, the chambers of commerce, the Society of Arts, and other public bodies, 
he examined the respective advantages of either adopting a new unit altogether 
for all nations, or one of the existing units by all of them, or a correlation of all 
the different units. The first plan, of adopting five or ten grains of gold as a new 
unit, would be impracticable, because it would require a general recoinage by all 
nations. The second plan, that of choosing one from the existing units, was 
better ; and the choice would depend on the number of persons among whom the 
same unit is already in circulation, the amount of trade which is regulated by such 
unit, the amount of coinage of the same already issued, and the relative conve- 
nience of the different systems. As regards the population, the pound circulates in 
England with 30,000,000 of people ; the franc in France, Italy, Belgium, Switzer- 
land, which have collectively 70,000,000; the dollar in the United States, which 
have 31,000,000; the florin in Austria, which has 34,00,000; the thaler in Ger- 
many and Prussia, which have 54,000,000; and the rouble in European Russia, 
having 59,000,000 of people. The franc, therefore, prevails among the largest 
number of persons. As regards trade, whilst the imports and exports of England 
in 1865 amount to £490,000,000, those of France, Italy, Belgium, and Switzerland 
in the same year amounted to £480,000,000, and those of the United States to 
£105,000,000. England here has the preeminence, though not so decided as one 
might imagine. And as regards the amount of coinage issued, whilst up to 1850 the 
issue of gold coin in England far exceeded that of France and the United States, it 
has not been so since that time. From 1793 to 1866 France issued £262,500,000 
of gold coins; the United Kingdom, from 1816 to 1866, £187,000,000 ; the United 
States, from 1792 to 1849, £109,000,000. Since 1850, France, £197,000,000 ; the 
United Kingdom, £91,000,000; the United States, £152,006,000. As regards the 
relative convenience of the different systems, it was a fact that, whilst this country 
has been for years labouring to establish a decimal coinage, France and the United 
States long possessed it; whilst, moreover, for international purposes, the pound 
was too large a unit. In three, therefore, out of the four elements, France has 
the advantage, and that induced the Congress to take the French coin as a basis. 
But the Congress did not recommend the franc as a unit for all nations, nor did it 
