REPORT OK THE COUNCIL. XCl 



of general interest to all local Societies. The Rules at present provide • 

 for such co-operation between the Sectional Committees (through their 

 Secretaries) and the Conference of Delegates ; but your Committee are of 

 opinion that, owing to the stress of work thrown upon the Sectional 

 Secretaries at the meetings of the Association, the Delegates cannot 

 derive the full benefit of such expert assistance as they may require in 

 connection with jjarticular lines of work in which their Societies are 

 engaged. For the same reason the Secretaries of the Sections are unable 

 to give full effect to any new schemes suitable for local investigation 

 which may originate in their Section, and which, if duly considered 

 beforehand and brought under the notice of the Delegates, might be of 

 use both to the Corresponding Societies and to the Association. Your 

 Committee recommend, therefore, that the work at present entrusted to 

 the Secretaries of the Sectional Committees under E,ule X. should devolve 

 upon the Organising Committees. These Committees already comprise 

 the Sectional Secretaries by virtue of their constitution,- so that no 

 additional work woukl be thrown upon these Secretaries, but the gentle- 

 men undertaking this ofSce would be enabled to give more deliberate 

 consideration to the work of the Corresponding Societies and to ensure 

 before the meeting of the Association that their various Sectional Com- 

 mittees, as well as the originator's of investigations requiring the co-opera- 

 tion of the Corresponding Societies, sliall be fully and authoritatively 

 represented at the Conference of Delegates. Your Committee propose, 

 in order to give practical effect to this suggestion, that the opening clause 

 of Rule 10 relating to Corresponding Societies be modified so as to 

 read : — 



' "The Organising Committees of each Section shall be instructed 

 to transmit to the Secretaries of the Sections, and through these to 

 the Secretaries of the Conference of Delegates, copies of any recom- 

 mendation, ikc." ' 



' Notice of this modification, if approved by the Council as recom- 

 mended by your Committee, must be brought before the General Com- 

 mittee at the next meeting. 



' In view of the increasing importance of science to the nation at large, 

 your Committee desire to call the attention of the Council to the fact 

 that in ths Corresponding Societies the British Association has gathered 

 in the various centres represented by these Societies practically all the 

 scientific activity of the provinces. The number of members and 

 Associates at present on the list of the Corresponding Societies 

 approaches 25,000, and no organisation is in existence anywhere in the 

 country better adapted than the British Association for stimulating, en- 

 couraging, and co-ordinating all the work being carried on by tlie seventy 

 Societies at present enrolled. Y''our Committee are of opinion that further 

 encouragement should be given to these Societies and their individual 

 working members by every means within the power of the Association, 

 and with the object of keeping the Corresponding Societies in more 

 permanent touch with the Association they suggest that an official 

 invitation on behalf of the Council be addressed to the Societies through 

 the Corresponding Societies Committee asking them to appoint stand - 



' Rule 10, Corresponding Societies. * Rule XC. 



