﻿56 
  

  

  Anniversary 
  Meeting. 
  

  

  [Nov. 
  30, 
  

  

  the 
  Government 
  on 
  the 
  other. 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  very 
  anomalous 
  position, 
  and 
  has 
  

   been 
  greatly 
  misunderstood. 
  It 
  has 
  led 
  to 
  the 
  misconception 
  on 
  the 
  

   part 
  of 
  some 
  that 
  the 
  Society 
  controlled 
  the 
  Office, 
  and 
  by 
  others 
  that 
  

   the 
  Government 
  (Board 
  of 
  Trade) 
  controlled 
  it, 
  and 
  by 
  more 
  that 
  the 
  

   annual 
  grant 
  of 
  <£10,000 
  is 
  made 
  to 
  and 
  in 
  support 
  of 
  the 
  Royal 
  Society, 
  

   or 
  of 
  its 
  own 
  objects, 
  whereas 
  the 
  grant 
  is 
  paid 
  direct 
  to 
  the 
  Director 
  

   of 
  the 
  Office 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  voted. 
  The 
  Society's 
  action 
  is 
  confined 
  to 
  the 
  

   selection 
  of 
  the 
  Committee, 
  which 
  superintends 
  the 
  Office, 
  while 
  the 
  Board 
  

   of 
  Trade, 
  leaving 
  to 
  the 
  Committee 
  the 
  details 
  of 
  their 
  operations, 
  exercise 
  

   only 
  a 
  general 
  control. 
  The 
  labours 
  of 
  the 
  Committee 
  are 
  entirely 
  

   gratuitous, 
  and 
  no 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  =£10,000 
  is 
  touched 
  by 
  them 
  or 
  by 
  the 
  

   Royal 
  Society. 
  

  

  I 
  believe 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  parallel 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  organization 
  as 
  this 
  in 
  any 
  other 
  

   department 
  of 
  the 
  Government. 
  It 
  has 
  its 
  advantage 
  in 
  securing 
  to 
  the 
  

   Office 
  absolute 
  freedom 
  from 
  that 
  disturbing 
  element 
  in 
  the 
  public 
  offices, 
  

   that 
  their 
  heads 
  are 
  chosen 
  partly 
  on 
  political 
  grounds 
  and 
  change 
  with 
  

   every 
  Government, 
  and 
  its 
  disadvantage 
  in 
  wanting 
  the 
  support 
  of 
  direct 
  

   Government 
  authority 
  and 
  prestige. 
  Hitherto, 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  care 
  of 
  the 
  

   Committee, 
  which 
  meets 
  almost 
  weekly, 
  to 
  the 
  zeal 
  and 
  efficiency 
  of 
  the 
  

   Director 
  (who 
  is 
  also 
  Secretary 
  to 
  the 
  Committee) 
  and 
  of 
  the 
  Marine 
  

   Superintendent, 
  it 
  has 
  w 
  T 
  orked 
  well. 
  Into 
  its 
  working 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  my 
  pur- 
  

   pose 
  to 
  enter 
  ; 
  its 
  efficiency 
  and 
  value 
  are 
  fully 
  acknowledged 
  by 
  the 
  

   public. 
  No 
  more 
  practical 
  proof 
  of 
  this 
  can 
  be 
  cited 
  than 
  the 
  general 
  

   desire, 
  supported 
  by 
  memorials 
  presented 
  to 
  Parliament, 
  for 
  the 
  restitu- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  storm-signals, 
  which 
  were 
  discontinued 
  after 
  Admiral 
  FitzRoy's 
  

   decease, 
  on 
  the 
  ground 
  of 
  their 
  trustworthiness 
  having 
  been 
  called 
  in 
  

   question. 
  It 
  is 
  no 
  little 
  testimony 
  to 
  the 
  foresight 
  of 
  that 
  zealous 
  officer 
  

   that 
  they 
  are 
  not 
  only 
  now 
  reestablished 
  and 
  in 
  full 
  working 
  order 
  at 
  

   100 
  stations 
  on 
  the 
  coast 
  of 
  Great 
  Britain, 
  but 
  that 
  the 
  very 
  warnings 
  

   issued 
  from 
  Paris 
  to 
  the 
  coast 
  of 
  France 
  by 
  the 
  Government 
  of 
  that 
  

   country 
  are 
  actually 
  sent 
  to 
  Paris 
  from 
  the 
  Meteorological 
  Office 
  in 
  

   London. 
  The 
  same 
  warnings 
  are 
  transmitted 
  along 
  the 
  whole 
  European 
  

   coast, 
  from 
  Norway 
  to 
  Spain; 
  and 
  the 
  system 
  has 
  been 
  extended 
  to 
  

   Italy, 
  Portugal, 
  and 
  Australia. 
  

  

  The 
  Kew 
  Observatory, 
  which 
  is 
  used 
  also 
  as 
  the 
  Central 
  Observatory 
  of 
  

   the 
  Meteorological 
  Committee, 
  is 
  supported 
  by 
  a 
  grant 
  from 
  that 
  Com- 
  

   mittee, 
  and 
  by 
  the 
  munificence 
  of 
  our 
  Fellow, 
  Mr. 
  Gassiot, 
  who 
  has 
  

   settled 
  on 
  it 
  a 
  fund 
  which 
  produces 
  about 
  ,£500 
  a 
  year 
  for 
  .the 
  caiTying 
  

   on 
  of 
  observations 
  chiefly 
  magnetical. 
  

  

  The 
  Circumnavigation 
  Committee. 
  — 
  The 
  scientific 
  results 
  of 
  the 
  ' 
  Chal- 
  

   lenger' 
  Expedition 
  have 
  far 
  exceeded 
  our 
  most 
  sanguine 
  anticipations. 
  

   The 
  Temperature 
  Survey 
  of 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  may, 
  as 
  Dr. 
  Carpenter 
  informs 
  

   me, 
  be 
  truly 
  characterized 
  as 
  the 
  most 
  important 
  single 
  contribution 
  ever 
  

   made 
  to 
  Terrestrial 
  Physics, 
  presenting 
  as 
  it 
  does 
  the 
  whole 
  thermal 
  

  

  