ANNUAL EEPORT FOR 1857. 



Third Report of the Council of the Philosophical Institute of 

 Victoria, presented to the Members at the General Meeting, on the 

 1th of December, 1857. 



The Council, in submitting- their Third Annual Report, congra- 

 tulate the members on the continued prosperity of the Institute. 



The position and prospects of the institute are highly satisfac- 

 tory for the present and most encouraging for the future. One 

 of the gratifying features in its history during the past year has 

 been the great extension of the roll of membership ; the number 

 of members having more than doubled since the date of the last 

 annual report. Since that time 155 gentlemen have been elected 

 by ballot Ordinary Members and one gentleman as a Correspond- 

 ing Member of the Institute. The Council feel justified in refer- 

 ring to this as an indication of the amount of public confidence 

 reposed in the Institute and they have no doubt but that many 

 of the newly-elected members will, from their scientific 

 attainments, prove valuable accessions to the Institute. 



Another circumstance indicative of the increased appreciation 

 of the objects of the Institute, was the large number of papers 

 presented on subjects legitimately within the province of the In- ' 

 stitute. The Council refer with great pleasure to their experience 

 in this particular, as it removed a difficulty that has in great 

 measure heretofore existed, and they trust that their successors 

 in office will have their duties lightened, and their anxieties re- 

 lieved in a similar manner. The Council have, with much delibe- 

 ration, exercised their discretion in selecting for publication in 

 the "Transactions" of the Institute such of these papers as 

 appeared in their judgment to be most original and likely to prove 

 most useful. 



The Council recommend to the consideration of their successors 

 in office, the system recently adopted, of printing the " Transac- 

 tions" at periods not exceeding six months, since, by this practice 

 the proceedings of the Institute receive earlier publicity. 



Another feature, not less gratifying, consists in the numbers of 

 contributions forwarded to the Institute from kindred societies. 

 The Council have placed themselves in communication with the 

 leading British and Foreign Scientific Associations, with the view 

 of exchanging copies of their " Transactions," and many of these 

 have already evinced a ready reciprocity. The Council look for- 

 ward with hope to the time when this element of mutual benefit 

 will yield the most beneficial results in forming the nucleus of a 

 valuable scientific library of reference for the members. It may 



