240 
second seven years they have fallen to £308, which means 
that in the second septennial period the receipts from 
members have been £300 less than they were in the first 
septennial period. Except for the Centenary Enlargement 
Fund, to be referred to further on, the other items of receipt 
have been fairly uniform throughout both septennial periods, 
and require no comment. In future years increased receipts 
may be looked for from societies availing themselves of the 
accommodation afforded by the newly-furnished rooms. 
The annual items of the Society’s ordinary expenditure 
during the last 14 years present great fluctuations, and a 
careful comparison of same will show how the diminishing 
receipts have compelled your successive councils to exercise 
rigid economy in the control of the Society’s income. 
The Charges on Property in the past year have been 
increased by a special item of £40 incurred by the renova- 
tion of the portraits and busts of deceased members. The 
condition of the portraits, and their frames, would not 
admit of their being longer neglected. It is the intention 
of your Council to attach to each painting and bust the 
name of the eminent man which it commemorates. 
In House Expenditure the larger and more numerous 
rooms now in the possession of the Society will necessitate 
an expenditure of an additional £10 annually for coal and 
gas; but, 'as a set-off, it is agreeable to have to report that 
the Commissioners of Inland Revenue have remitted for 
the future the charges for Inhabited House Duty and 
Property Tax, Schedule A, and the tax on dividends on the 
Great Western Railway Company’s Stock, which the Society 
has been paying for so many years. The receipt this session 
of £11 9s. 6d. from the Commissioners for past years’ taxes 
is acknowledged in the accompanying balance sheet. 
In the Administrative Charges the chief item of increase 
in the account for the past year has arisen from the engage- 
mehtiof Miv Alfred. Brothers, F.R.A.S., as Curator from 1st 
0-S88I MOT?.aaB~.8I .o'?!— .YXX .JoY~.ooa .jih^ A .tiJ— 
