1855.] 



ANNUAL KEPORT OF THE COUNCIL, 1855. 



399 



hitherto borne no active part in the Society's proceeding.?, but 

 whose contributions would most effectually promote the objects 

 which it is designed to accomplish. Among the papers com- 

 municated during the past year, the Council have pleasure in 

 referring to three on engineering works of the province, which 

 were appreciated by the members as acceptable contributions to 

 a department to which previous reports have referred, only to 

 express regret at its neglect. 



The anticipated resumption for public use, of the apartments 

 occupied by the Institute in the Government House, consequent 

 on the removal of the seat of government to Toronto — to which 

 attention was specially directed in the last Annual Report, — 

 led the Council to devise plans for preventing the best interests 

 of the Institute being affected thereby. The results of these 

 are already known to the members. Temporary rooms, in a 

 convenient locality, have been secured on advantageous tenns, 

 and are now occupied, and in use for the regular weekly meet- 

 ings. The munificent gift by George William Allan, Esq., one 

 of the Vice-Presidents, of a valuable site in Pembroke-street, 

 whereon to erect a permanent Hall for the Institute, was 

 acknowledged in the report of last year ; and a general meeting, 

 called for the purpose, authorized the Council to accept the 

 gift, and to take all requisite steps for the erection of a suitable 

 building. 



In furtherance of this, two successive grants of £500 each 

 have been made by the Legislature, and an appeal by the 

 Council to the members generally has already been so far 

 responded to, that the Council have to acknowledge a subscrip- 

 tion hst, which though as yet only including the names of sixty- 

 eight members, out of more than four hundred, amounts to the 

 Bum of £716 10s. F. W. Cumberland, Esq., having further 

 liberally offered his valuable services as architect, immediate 

 steps were taken for commencing the permanent building, and 

 on the 13th of November, His Excellency the Governor General 

 was graciously pleased to lay the foundation stone, in the pre- 

 sence of the Council and a large body of the members. 



On the evening of the same day, the members of the Insti- 

 tute assembled, by invitation, to a Conversazione at Moss Park, 

 the residence of G. "W. Allan, Esq., Vice-President, when His 

 Excellency the Governor General again honoured them with 

 his presence. An interesting collection of objects of natural 

 history and works of art was provided for inspection. Profes- 

 sors Bovcll, Croft, Cherriman and Hincks, and Mr. Glen, 

 exhibited a variety of preparations by means of microscopes 

 they had contributed for the use of the members ; and papers 

 were read : by Professor Wilson " On Some Associations of 

 the Canadian and Engli.sh Maple," and by Paul Kane, Esq., 

 " Notes of a Trip to Lord Selkirk's Settlement on Red River, 

 Hudson Bay Company's Territory." The Conversazione 

 proved a highly agreeable reunion, attracting an unusually 

 numerous attendance of members, and placing the Institute 

 under additional obligations to the Vice-President for bringing 

 them together, in circumstances calculated to give a fresh 

 stimulus to the proceedings of the ensuing .session, and to have 

 a permanently beneficial effect on the Society. 



The Council have much pleasure in congratulating the 

 members on so auspicious a commencement of operations for 

 providing permanent accommodation for the Library and 

 Museum, and a suitable Hall for their meetings, in a building 

 exclusively devoted to the use of the Institute. They re- 

 commend to their successors to carry out the object with as 

 little delay as possible; while at the same time it is their duty 

 to remind the members that further liberality on their part will 

 be requisite to enable the Council to execute the plans furnish- 

 ed by the architect, even in a modified form. 



The rapid increase in the number of the members of the 

 Institute has forced on the notice of the Council the impossi- 

 bility of meeting future applications for the early numbers of 

 the Journal, or of obtaining complete sets to present to corres- 

 ponding Societies ; and as the only alternative open to 

 them was the reprinting the earlier numbers at a considerable 

 cost, or commencing a new series : after mature consideration 

 they have determined on the latter course as in all respects most 

 conducive to the best interests of the Society. The necessity 

 of such a change has led to a reconsideration of the whole plan 

 of the Journal, with a view to the more effectual accomplish- 

 ment of the objects for which it was instituted, and the Council 

 have accordingly, after much deliberation, prepared a scheme for 

 conducting the new series of the Journal, to be submitted to the 

 consideration of the members, at the Annual General Meeting. 

 In laying this plan before the Institute, the Council feel bound to 

 refer to the continued success of the Journal, under its present 

 management, and to record their sense of the zeal with which 

 Professor Hind has fulfilled his duties as editor of the series 

 which it is now proposed to bring to a close. 



The Canadian «Toiimal — Neiv Scries* 



1. The Journal to be published in octavo form, each alternate 

 month, beginning with January, 1856. 



2. AH " Original Communications" to be inserted first, under this or 

 some similar general heading, and whether long or short, to have in- 

 variably the name or initials of the author. 



3. Original Keviews to form the Second Division in each number, 

 and Reports of the Meetings of the Institute and other Societies, the 

 Third Division. 



4. All matter derived from p ublished sources, to be printed in small 

 type, and to form a distinct ilivision, or appendix, under the title of 

 "Scientific and Literary Excel pts," or some other similar heading. 



5. The conduct of the Journal to be entrusted to an Editing Com- 

 mittee, to be annually nominated by the Council from the general body 

 of the Members of the Institution, at their first meeting in November. 



6. The Council to elect one of their Editing Committee as Convener, 

 who shall perform the duties of General Editor in the conduct of the 

 Journal, receiving and transmitting communications and ■works for 

 review, to the members of the Committee to whom their subjects 

 pertain ; and exercising the general oversight requisite for the suc- 

 cessful issue of a periodical publication. 



7. The Convener to summon the Committee, once at least in the 

 interval between the publication of each number, to deliberate on the 

 contents of the succeeding number. 



8. To be incumbent on each Member of the Editing Committee to 

 endeavour to obtain original communications of interest and value in 

 his own department, in addition to his own personal contributions. 



9. The duties of the Editing Committee, to be classified and divided 

 among its members, according to the following subdivisions, subject 

 to alteration or addition by the Council : — I. Geology and Mineralogy. 

 II. Physiology and Niitural History III. Ethnology and Archocolopy. 

 IV. Agricultural Science. V. Chijmistry. TI. Mathematics and Is'a- 

 tural Philosophy. VII. Engineering and Architecture. 



The Council have much pleasure in congratulating the 

 members on the hiirhly satisfactory results shown b}' their 

 financial statement for the present year, uotwithstandinc; the 

 extraordinary expenditure unavoidably incurred, in consequence 

 of the removal from the rooms hitherto occupied, free of cost, 

 in Government House, and the increase in the items of salary 

 and rent, which the Troa.surer's accounts show, in comparison 

 with last year. The following statement, it will be seen, 

 includes a sum of £150, received from the Athenicum, being 

 the balance of two annual grants of £100 each, made by the 

 Legislature to the Athcn;i?um, for the purpose of carrying out 

 the special objects which the Canadian Institute has now 

 undertaken to accompli.sh. Of this sum, the Council recommend 

 that .£75 be added to the Building Fund, as an object in which 

 the Library department is specially interested, and that the 

 remainder be expended on books. The subjoined statement 

 exhibits a balance in favour of the Institute of £14.')8 18s. 4d. 



