756 
Report of the Education Committee 
account— be the exception for a candidate to reach such a stan- 
dard ; although it is true that this year (1894) four out of the ten 
winners of first-class certificates would have done so. Previous 
years show, however, less favourable results ; in nineteen years out of 
the twenty-seven there would have been no life memberships at all ; 
in six, only one ; in one year (1889), two ; and in only one year 
(1894), so many as four (see column 7 of Table). 
12 . Intermediate between the high maximum of three-fourths 
marks and the general giving of life memberships to winners of first- 
class certificates ( i.e . candidates who satisfy the examiners in the 
compulsory subjects) is the giving of memberships to those who, 
obtaining a first-class certificate, obtain two-thirds of the total 
number of marks. If this plan had been adopted since the com- 
mencement, there would have been twelve years with no member- 
ships, six years with one membership, four with two, two with four 
(1890 and 1892), one with six (1894), one with seven (1889), and 
one with eight (1893) (see column 6 of Table). Under such a 
system as this, the average of the last ten years would have been a 
little over three and a half memberships per annum, as against the 
average of seven life memberships under the old system ; or, in other 
words, the life memberships would have been reduced by one-half. 
It is only since 1889 that the number of life memberships granted 
annually has attained noticeable proportions. The 52 memberships 
granted in these six years would have been reduced to 31 if the two- 
thirds limit, and to 9 if the three -fourths limit, had been in operation. 
13 . It is of course impossible to say how many candidates will 
come up for the Society’s examinations in the future. It might 
happen that there was a large influx of good candidates, and the 
Society might be called upon to give away an indefinitely large num- 
ber of life memberships to those who obtained high marks. This 
difficulty the Committee propose to meet, as mentioned in para- 
graph 9, by asking the Council to place at their disposal a maximum 
of five life memberships per annum, to be awarded to those candi- 
dates who stand highest on the list, and obtain not less than two- 
thirds of the maximum number of marks. The largest annual 
expense to the Society under this arrangement would be 75 1. (i.e. 
five life memberships at 15/. each) ; and, as it happens, 15/. is just 
about the sum which represents the net cost to the Society of pro- 
viding a member aged twenty-five with his privileges during his life. 
14 . The five life memberships may be regarded as taking the 
place, to a large extent, of the money prizes heretofore offered to the 
four candidates highest on the list, as it is doubtless the desire of the 
Council to discourage candidates from coming up for examination for 
the mere purpose of obtaining monetary rewards. The prizes hereto- 
fore offered have been 25/., 15/., 10/., and 5/., or 55/. in all ; and the 
Committee are of opinion that it would be preferable to substitute 
for these, as incentives to the students to strive for the highest 
place in the Examination, the Medal of the Society, to be awarded in 
gold to the candidate placed first of those gaining the five life 
