38 
officers’ reports for 1949 
of about £240 for general expenses, the Year Book and the Distributor’ s 
Beport, and £410 for Tl'atsonia. Thus an additional income of at least 
£140 is required to maintain our publications at the present level, and 
even more if they are to be increased. 
This deficit has arisen owing to the increased cost of producing an 
enlarged ])eriodical in more frequent parts. Watsonia and the Year 
Book published during 1949 cost £492 compared with £291 for the 
194G/7 Keport and Distributor’s Beport issued with it. The expecta- 
tion that our improved publication would be followed by a marked in- 
crease in membership has not materialised. Actually the reduction in 
applications from people wishing to join the Society which became ap- 
parent in 1948, has been even more evident in 1949, which produced the 
lowest net increase since 1944. As subscriptions are our main source of 
income it is hoped that steps now being taken to make our journal 
more widely known, and the assistance of members in introducing it 
to their friends, will rectify the position during the coming year. The 
gap was partly filled in 1949 by a generous grant from the Royal Society 
of which £75 was applied towards the cost of printing original papers 
in irutsoniu and the balance of £25 towards the cost of the Conference 
Report. 
During the year we have expended the unusually large sum of £15 6s 
on four purchases of runs of back Reports. Of many of these parts our 
stocks are low, and it is expected that the Society will benefit from 
these transactions before the end of 1950. 
The Publications Fund figures also call for an explanation. The 
purpose of this fund is to accumulate proceeds of sales of works com- 
piled and published for the Society by the late Dr Druce, and it is hojied 
to use the money to finance fresh editions of Comital Flora and the 
British riant List. The cost of British Flowering Plants and Modern 
Systematic Methods (the 1948 Conference Report) debited to this fund 
has resulted in a net charge of £56 16s Id, which should soon be covered 
by the proceeds of sales. The book was issued too late in the year for 
these to show any appreciable return in the present accounts. Your 
Council very properly took the view that any arrangements made for 
financing the book should not handicap our intentions of issuing fresh 
editions in due course of the works for which the Fund is intended. 
The total amount standing to the credit of members at the end of 
the year in respect of subscriptions paid in advance amounts to £66 
13s 6d, and in addition we hold 5s 3d on account of a member for publi- 
cations to be ordered. 
Work in connection with the finances of the Society has increased 
considerably during the year and I should like to express my appre- 
ciation of the loyal assistance of Mr E. L. Swann in collecting sub- 
scriptions and of the work of Mr O. L. Collenette as Honorary Auditor. 
J. E. Loijsley. 
December 31st, 1949. 
