2 



The Tenth General Meeting. 



"Among these the Committee desires in particular to mention, 

 with special regret, the late Marquis of Lansdowne, who from the 

 very first took a lively interest in our Society, an interest which 

 he continued to show to the last year of his life : who kindly came 

 forward as our first Patron to inaugurate the Society ten years since 

 in this very room ; and whose magnificent hospitality at Bowood 

 on the occasion of the Chippenham Meeting in 1855, our members 

 will not readily forget. 



"Another noble member whose death we are also called upon to 

 deplore this year, is the late Earl of Mornington, who also threw 

 open his house and grounds at Draycot, and no less liberally 

 entertained the Society at the same Annual Meeting : and there 

 are many other valuable members whose loss we have to lament 

 during the past year. 



" With regard to the work of the Society since the last Annual 

 Meeting: two fresh numbers of the Magazine have been issued, 

 the merits of which we must leave it to the members to determine; 

 and a third Magazine (No. 23) is now in hand, and considerably 

 advanced towards completion. This 8th volume will also contain 

 an Index to the whole, prepared by Canon Jackson. 



"In respect to finance, your Committee need only state that 

 while every farthing of income is expended in the work of the 

 Society, the expenditure is counterbalanced by the subscriptions ; 

 and retaining our capital in hand, there are no outstanding debts 

 to hamper the future progress of the Society. 



" The Museum and Library have been enriched by various dona- 

 tions during the past year : among which we would gratefully 

 record sundry fossils presented by Dr. Thuinam, and others by 

 Mr. Ezekiel Edmonds ; twelve volumes of Notes and Queries by 

 the Rev. E. H. Sladen ; some Pamphlets by Mr. Akerman and 

 Mr. Roach Smith ; and some Tradesmen's Tokens by Miss 

 Cunnington. 



" So far, your Committee has briefly recorded the progress of the 

 Society since this time last year. But as this Annual Meeting sees 

 the Society again assembled in the capital town of North Wilts, 

 the central town of the county — the seat moreover of its Museum 1 



