55 
has been performed by them without drawing upon any of the Society's funds, 
and that the labours of the Hon. Treasurer have been rendered much heavier, 
by the unwillingness of members to pay their subscriptions. The Council 
therefore trust that the Society will render its officers every assistance in its 
power, and not hinder the carrying out of a plan undertaken by its express wish ; 
and they would remind the members that the rate of subscription to this, is lower 
than to that of any other Society or Association of the same kind in England, 
partly arising from the fact that there is no expense incurred in hiring rooms for 
the meetings, or a secure place to keep the Society's property, owing to the libe- 
rality of the Committee of the Bristol Institution, who have most kindly placed 
two rooms at the disposal of the Society, when not otherwise engaged. It is a 
source of great regret to your Council that, in consequence of the present state of 
the funds, they cannot advise the appropriation of any moneys towards a gratuity 
to the Institution, according to the custom of former years. It must be remem- 
bered, however, that the large balance against the treasurer is more apparent than 
real, and will partly be covered by a proportion of the annual subscriptions now 
due, which, under ordinary circumstances, would have been paid in January last. 
In conclusion, your Council would congratulate the Society upon the continuance 
of its steady advancement to a good scientific position, as shown by the number 
and character of the papers read, and by the other evidences of work done by the 
members, both in and out of the Sections, and would express the hope that the 
next Annual Meeting will find it established on as firm a financial, as it now is on 
a scientific basis. 
The Hon. Treasurer, Mr. W. W. Stoddart, F.G.S,, then read his ab- 
stract of audited accounts for the year (see page 58). He stated that the 
explanation of the apparently large balance against him of <£23 13s. was 
easy in many ways. £7 was caused by the experimental reprinting 
of a portion of the Proceedings of 1866, and £,\'2 5s. was due 
to arrears of subscriptions, almost entirely the extra half-crowns. The 
time at which the subscriptions were collected, too, had been postponed 
from January to May, according to the alteration of Tlule IX, carried at 
the last November meeting. If the subscriptions had been collected as 
usual in January, he would have had as large a balance upon the credit 
side as he now had on the debit. This showed that the calculation he 
made at the last Annual Meeting was correct, and, though he had gone 
carefully iuto the matter, he was quite sure that the subscription of 7s. 6d. 
would keep the Society always ahead of debt even with its present expen- 
diture. He regretted much to have to complain again of the difficulty he 
experienced in obtaining his subscriptions, and read a few letters from 
members who were unwilling to pay. He did not think that any reason- 
able person would grumble at the subscription, considering the large amount 
of information given in the journals. Most societies' subscriptions were 
Ml Is. per annum, instead of 7s. 6d. 
Mr. Henry Johnson moved the first resolution—-" That the Report 
now read, together with the Treasurer's Account, be approved and printed 
