The Sixth General Meeting. 



247 



Bristol, the two early capitals of the South of England, it was 

 the peculiar battle-field of contending factions, during the 12th, 

 13th, and 14th centuries, and the scene of many a struggle between 

 the barons and their sovereign, or between the barons themselves. 

 Again, during the great rebellion in the middle of the 17th cen- 

 tury, and even in later times, the rival forces here met during the 

 civil conflicts which then occurred ; so that he was correct in 

 saying that for historical and antiquarian interest, this district, if 

 not pre-eminent, equalled any other upon the face of our island. 

 As to Ecclesiastical buildings, the neighbourhood certainly had no 

 Cathedral like that of Salisbury, no Abbey like that of Lacock ; 

 but it had several interesting parish churches, such as Preshute and 

 Bedwyn, which would well repay an examination. There was also 

 close to the town a Roman Station of considerable importance. 

 He would now only add that this meeting would conclude in three 

 days — and they would find those three days probably too short for 

 the variety of subjects they had to examine — and that the com- 

 mittee having taken into consideration the place of their next 

 Annual Meeting, had come to the conclusion to hold it at Malms- 

 bury. Malmsbur}' - had many objects of antiquarian interest in and 

 around it, and he hoped that the selection would be approved. 



The Rev. A. 0. Smith (one of the General Secretaries) then read 

 THE REPORT. 



"The Committee of the Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural His- 

 tory Society have much pleasure in reporting the general well-being 

 of the Society, which still maintains a steady increase in its number 

 of members, the list of names now amounting to 388 : being a slight 

 addition since last year ; and this, though we have to lament the 

 deduction of ten members, by death, or withdrawal, or removal 

 from the county. Thus the Society has gradually advanced with- 

 out a single drawback from the day of its inauguration at Devizes 

 in 1853, when it numbered 137 supporters, making a steady pro- 

 gress every year, and attracting the attention and cohesion of resi- 

 dents in all parts, until it has now gained a firm hold in the county, 

 and your Committee would fain believe, has secured the good-will 

 and interest of most educated Wiltshiremen. 



q 2 



