24 



The progress of the Society may be judged from the two items, 

 number of members and balance of funds in hand, some of which 

 appear in the following table, being gathered from the reports at the 



annual meetings. 



Year. Members. Funds. 



1883 68 £7.^ 



1884 120 34 



1885 132 60 



1886 — — No record. 



1887 — 52 



1888 — 53 



1889 — — No record. 



1890 103 56 



1891 125 — 



1892 115 — 



1893 114 45 



1894 — — No record. 



1895 124 Reserve Fund drawn on. 



1896 — — No record. 



1897 — No record, a bald report. 



For 10 years or so, from 1883, the Society seems to have 

 advanced and prospered ; after that, occurred a gradual falling off, 

 which is reflected in the reduction in the funds, and in the bald 

 character of the annual reports. At a meeting on 30th October, 

 1896^ Dr. Mahomed, the President, told the members that "the 

 Society had not flourished as it ought to have done during the last 

 year," but " he thought there was a considerable amount of vitality 

 left." This vitality, however, was doubtless ebbing, for on the 4th 

 November, 1897, at a general meeting, it was decided "that the 

 Society be dissolved at the termination of the present quarter," 

 when there was also a discussion as to the re-construction of the 

 Society. 



At a final meeting on oth December, 1897, the library and 

 collections were vested in trustees, who were authorized to give the 

 books and collections to any Natural Science Society that may be 

 formed in Bournemouth before the end of 1898. However, it was 

 finally directed that the books be presented at once to the Public 

 Library, and that the collections be offered to the Town Council, 

 and failing acceptance, to the School of Art. 



Here we have, then, in miniature, an account of the rise and fall 

 of a local Scientific Society, and some of the facts in that history 

 may not be without interest to us now. 



The Society acquired, by gift or presentation at various times, 

 considerable property in the shape of (i) collections and (2) books. 

 For example, as regards (i) it is recorded that in 1883 collection 

 of birds was presented by Mrs. Pearson. In 1884 two cases of 

 animals and some very fine specimens of moths were given by Dr. 

 Satchel ; and there are, generally, constant references to various gifts 

 made by the members to the Society. With regard to (2) it is plain 



