14 JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON). [VOL. XVI. 



Secretary who surveyed all their views with most intelligent interest 

 from a distance, and whose contributions, though they were compara- 

 tively few, were among the most valuable received : he meant Mr. Bell. 

 He might mention, on behalf of the Members whom they had done the 

 honour of re-electing, that they were also remarkably regular in their 

 attendance, and although there were some Members of that Council 

 who had dropped out through paucity of attendance, the remainder — 

 a large majority — were remarkably regular ; and, considering that these 

 were men who were extremely busy, but who came in the afternoon 

 and spent an hour or two there, they ought to feel indebted to them. 

 There was only one Member on the list of officers whom it would be 

 of great advantage to have afresh year after year, and that was the 

 President. ("No, no.") He had the great pleasure of thanking them 

 many times for his re-election ; but he always felt that it was 

 accompanied by a very serious disadvantage — that was that they got no 

 Presidential Address. He was very sorry for it, and he wished he could 

 produce one annually. It must be remembered as his excuse that in 

 those learned Societies at whose Annual Meetings the Presidential 

 Address formed part, there was a new President each time. In con- 

 clusion, he tendered his apology if he had not been able to properly 

 discharge in that particular the office of President. (Applause.) 



5. Mr. G. A. Joseph read portions of the following Note and 

 Appendix : — 



