316 
SECRETARY'S REPORT. 
The Society, during the past year, has made steady and con- 
tinuous progress. The number of members is now 215, an increase 
of five on last year. Two members have compounded for their annual 
subscriptions, making a total of 33 life members. The Society has 
lost two members by death, and five have retired. There has been 
an addition of twelve new members. The two members whose deaths 
we have to regret are Sir Henry Edwards, Bart., C.B., &c., of Pye 
Nest, near Halifax, and Mr. W. Sykes Ward, of Denison Hall, Leeds. 
The latter was a very old member of the Society, and took great 
interest in its welfare. From the year 1854 or 1855 to 1870 he 
occupied the position of Honorary Secretary. He was a constant 
contributor to its proceedings, and read many papers at its meetings. 
He was a man of considerable ability and many accomplishments. 
He was by profession a solicitor, but his tastes led him in early life 
to scientific pursuits, and these he followed with rare ardour during 
his leisure time. He was a Fellow of the Chemical Society, and 
contributed to the transactions of that Society. During his earlier 
years he patented a system of telegraphy, and made inventions which 
he also patented in connection with a system of atmospheric railways. 
In his later years he devoted much time to photography, and achieved 
marked success as an amatuer in that art. He was an enthusiastic 
lover of music, and studied theories of sound with some success. In 
1846 he contributed a paper to this Society, which was not published 
in its proceedings, " On Vibration Producing Sound." Mr. Ward 
was for many years a member of the Council, and for several, one of 
the Honorary Secretaries of the Leeds Philosophical and Literary 
Society. During the last three or four years he has led a life of 
retirement. 
Three meetings, including the present one, have been held during 
the year. The first was at Barnsley, in April, and was presided over 
by Joseph Mitchell, Esq., C.E., F.G.S., who gave an address. Papers 
were also read by Dr. H. Clifton Sorby, F.R.S., Messrs. William 
Cash, F.G.S., G. R. Vine, WiUiam Home, and H. B. Stocks. 
The second meeting took the form of an excursion in Wensleydale 
