THE RETROSPECT OF THE YEAR. 79 



— they belong to the class of literature which Charles 

 Lamb styled "books which are no books." I hope I shall 

 not be charged with being a cynic or a pessimist if I say 

 that, pretty generally, reports are " as dry as a Monday 

 bun !" 



It seems to be expected, however, at the annual meeting 

 of a society like ours, there should be some statement 

 made of the doings, in its various departments. In ac- 

 cordance therefore with this time-honored custom, I will 

 read to you the Secretary's report for the year ending 

 May 1, 1894. 



There have been thirteen meetings of the society held at 

 its rooms the past year, for business and discussion. At 

 these meetings, papers mostly of an informal character, 

 have been offered by the following members : The Pres- 

 ident, Professor Morse, Mr. Nevins, Dr. Cherrington, 

 Mr. Sears, and Rev. Mr. Latimer ; and a paper written 

 byMrs. Grace A. Oliver, upon "Literature for Children," 

 was read by Mr. Willson. 



Reniarks upon these papers were made by the President, 

 Mr. Hunt, Mr. Robinson, Professor Morse, Mr. Bridg- 

 man, Dr. Cherrington, Mr. Welch, Mr. Cousins, Mr. 

 Manning and other members. 



All who participated in these semi-monthly meetings 

 have spoken quite favorably of them, regarding them as 

 interesting and instructive. The attendance so far has 

 been good, but will, we hope, be larger as the meetings 

 become better understood. They are held in one of our 

 library rooms, and it is designed to have them as social as 

 possible, so that no one need feel afraid to speak, as some 

 might hesitate to do, if we met in a larger place. 



The course of free lectures in Plummer Hall was well 

 attended. This course attracts a great many people who 

 probably never attend other lectures. The audience is 



