The President's Address. 



125 



antiquities to be met with in Europe, yet I regret to say I have never 

 devoted that attention to the subject which many of my predecessors 

 have done, and which has so well qualified them for the presidency 

 of this Association, and therefore feel myself like a drone among* 

 bees. . It must, I am sure, be a source of pride and satisfaction to all 

 who have watched the progress of this Society since its establishment 

 in 1853, that its operations have been crowned with such, signal 

 sucess, thanks to the zealous and united efforts of Mr. Poulett 

 Scrope, Mr. Sotheron Estcourt, the late Mr. Sidney Herbert, Sir. 

 John Awdry, Mr. Britton, Canon Jackson, the late Mr. Fane, (Vicar 

 of Warminster,) Mr. Lukis,Mr. Cunnington, Mr. Smith, ofYatesbury,. 

 and many others whom I might enumerate, and who have all in 

 their several departments proved themselves staunch and devoted 

 friends of this institution. And as an evidence of the amount of work 

 which has been accomplished up to this 20th anniversary of its birth, 

 I would simply allude to the fact that the Society has held nineteen 

 General Meetings, commencing at Devizes in October, 1853 ; and 

 subsequent meetings have been held at Salisbury, Warminster, 

 Chippenham, Bradford, Marlborough, Swindon in 1860, Shaftesbury, 

 Malmesbury, Hungerford, Wilton, and Trowbridge, the two last 

 meetings having been under the presidency of Mr. Pemuddocke, 

 (whom I am glad to welcome amongst us to-day, not forgetting too 

 our old friend, Sir J ohn Awdry, who has also filled the chair asPresident 

 of the Society ; ) so that it may be fairly said that the Society has 

 left no part of the County un visited, and has on two or three occasions 

 made a foray across the border, which we are, in fact, about to do 

 to-morrow ; and it has occurred to me, therefore, if it would not be 

 politic for the future to confine the General Meetings of this Societj 

 to once in two years, instead of every year. You will, I am sure, 

 allow that one of the chief and not the least interesting features of 

 this Society was the establishment of its Magazine, which has 

 maintained its attractive character throughout by the talented manner 

 in which it has been conducted, containing as it does so many 

 valuable and interesting records, which will form together, some 

 future day, a county history of itself. The Magazine has now 

 reached its 40th Number. I should make my address far too lengthy 



