Report  to  the  General  Meeting. 
v 
cases,  can  be  set  up  on  the  ground  of  inability  to  discharge  their 
obligations — a pica  to  which  the  Council  have  always  most  con- 
siderately attended  in  the  case  of  those  Members  who,  from  ad- 
verse circumstances,  have  unfortunate! v been  unable  to  meet  even 
the  small  demands  of  the  Society.  The  Council  have  never  for 
an  instant  doubted,  under  all  this  forbearance,  the  just  and  legal 
claim  the  charter  of  the  Society  gave  them  to  recover  these  ar- 
rears in  a court  of  law  ; but  thinking  that  many  of  the  defaulters 
might  regard  the  payments  due  from  them  as  simply  optional, 
like  those  of  an  unchartered  club  or  association,  held  together  by 
moti\es  merely  of  personal  convenience,  and  with  advantages  en- 
joyed only  while  the  voluntary  subscription  is  yearly  paid,  they 
conceived  that  the  opinion  of  eminent  counsel  on  this  point,  if 
obtained  and  transmitted  to  them,  would  at  once  remove  such 
doubts,  and  lead  to  the  instant  payment  of  the  arrears  due.  Ac- 
rordinglv,  such  legal  opinion  was  obtained  from  Sir  Frederick 
Thesiger  and  Mr.  Warren,  in  the  following  terms,  and  a copy  of 
it  addressed  in  a letter  by  the  Chairman  of  the  Finance  Com- 
mittee to  each  Member  in  arrear,  namely  : — 
“We  can  see  no  difficulty  whatever  in  this  case.  No  member  of 
the  Society  can  legally  ccaw?  to  be  such,  simply  by  discontinuing  the 
payment  of  his  subscription,  lly  so  doing  he  may  disentitle  himself 
to  the  privileges  of  the  Society,  but  unquestionably  remains  liable  to 
pay  all  arrears  of  subscription  which  may  be  due,  till  he  sliall  have 
legally  withdrawn  from  the  Society  in  the  manner  provided  for  in  the 
bye-laws.  The  subscriptions  are  by  no  means  voluntary  donations,  but 
legal  dues,  and,  as  such,  legally  recoverable  by  the  Secretary  for  the 
use  of  the  Society.  Every  Member  is  clearly  apprised  of  his  legal 
liabilities  by  the  circular  sent  to  hint,  announcing  his  election.  We 
nre  therefore  of  opinion  that  none  of  the  grounds  suggested  in  the  case 
are  available  for  resisting  payment  of  the  subscriptions  in  arrear. 
(Signed)  “ Fbedebick  Tiiesioeb. 
“ Samuel  Warhen. 
**  Inner  Temple , May  7,  1849.’’ 
Of  the  parties  thus  addressed  only  about  one-half  favoured  the 
Chairman  with  an  answer,  cither  by  paying  the  arrears  or  enter- 
ing into  explanations  by  way  of  extenuation  of  claim;  while  the 
