the Microscopical Society. 
79 
The President delivered the following Address : — 
Gentlemen, — It has been customary on the recurrence of 
the anniversary of this Society for the President to make some 
observations, in addition to the reports of the Auditors and 
Council, on the progress made during the past year. 
In compliance with that custom I have first to congratulate 
you on the accession to our ranks of no less than thirty new 
members ; a greater number, I believe, than have been elected 
in any one year since the formation of the Society. That our 
members, both new and old, take an interest in our proceed- 
ings, is evinced by the increased attendance at our ordinary 
meetings ; while the subjects brought forward, and the discus- 
sions which have taken place on them, sufficiently prove that 
a large proportion of us are working microscopists. 
By the Auditors' Report at the last anniversary we were 
informed that the funds in the Treasurer's hands, which at the 
previous audit amounted to 85/., had become reduced to the 
small sum of one pound and eight pence. At the same time 
the publication of our Transactions was considerably in arrear ; 
and to add to our difficulties, the Horticultural Society, whose 
rooms we have hitherto occupied at a rent proposed l3y them- 
selves, gave us to understand that this rent would be increased 
by ten pounds a year. The ground assigned for the increase 
was the large amount of accommodation afforded to us ; and 
inasmuch as the occupation of the council-room every Wednes- 
day by our curator was not contemplated when the rent was 
originally fixed, there was some show of justice in the de- 
mand. It was found also that very few of our members 
availed themselves of the opportunity afforded them of coming 
here in the daytime to use the microscopes. The Council, 
therefore, judged it proper, in accordance with the economy 
which the state of our funds so peremptorily obliged us to 
exercise, to discontinue the Wednesday attendance of the 
curator, by which they hoped not merely to save his salary, 
but also to remove the ground assigned for the proposed in- 
crease of our rent. 
In this latter expectation they have been disappointed. The 
Horticultural Society persist in their determination ; and it 
has therefore been resolved to remove our meetings to No. 5, 
Cavendish Square, where the Chemical Society will afford us 
the use of very eligible rooms, together with light and fire, for 
the rent which we have hitherto paid without these accommo- 
dations. 
By the Auditor's Report, just now read, you will perceive 
